Back to Life
by Rien V. Taloe
Summary: What if Iwasawa didn't disappear and had a new chance to start over? A second chance at life. How one's past can still follow you after going through "death" and back.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: I don't own Angel Beats.**

**WARNING: Episode 3 spoilers**

**[EDIT 8.01.2012] Here starts the beginning of revision and editing for "Back to Life". I'll be doing this to look over the rest of the other chapters to minimize the amount of errors in the entire work. I'm also going to try to the earlier chapters flow better to match the writing style to the more recent ones.**** It certainly won't be prefect and I might not find every mistake (and since I want to keep as much of the original text as possible), but I'll do my best. It'll take a while to complete this task. I'll put a brief note at the beginning of each edited chapter to let you know of the progress.  
**

* * *

Yuri had a new plan to learn the secrets about God. It was to break into Tenshi's room to find any information about her connection to God. While she and the others were in her room, Girls Dead Monsters would be distracting the students, staff, and Tenshi until they find something useful.

But, things always don't happen the way it was planned out to be.

The diversionary team had been suppressed by the school faculty and Tenshi was on her way back to her dorm. Iwasawa didn't what else to do. A riot had erupted in the crowd and the teachers were quickly surrounding her and the rest of the band. Things were certainly not in their favor tonight.

A male teacher walked to her acoustic guitar that was still sitting on its stand and picked up its neck. "I can throw this away, right?" he asked the other teachers.

Something just snapped inside of her head."Don't touch that..." Iwasawa's voice was quiet and low. The teacher didn't seem to pay her any mind.

"Don't... Don't touch that!" she screamed. She pushed off the floor, forcibly making her restrainers relinquished her, darting toward the teacher, and tackled him to the ground. Hisako took this chance created by the band leader to headbutt the teacher holding her and hastily ran to the staircase. Irie and Sekine stood ingrained to their spot, frozen as they and the rest of the student body watched.

Iwasawa backed to the wall behind her, possessively clutching her guitar to her body. Hisako had reached for the door, slamming it open without hesitation. The staff were rught about to close in on Iwasawa when she spontaneously started to started to strum the guitar.

A single voice was heard in the large hall as music echoed throughout the gymnasium.

_Joushiki buttereu yatsuga waratteru _

Hisako swiveled in the chair and began to broadcast the sound to the entire school through the loudspeakers.

_tsugi wa donna uso tsuku_

_sorede erareta mono_

_daijini kazatteokeru no?_

"The new song..." Yui whispered amongst the mass of soulless beings encompassing her.

_Hito wa sore demo susmanakya naranai_

Tenshi, hearing the song through the speakers, turned heel, and walked back towards the hall.

_Sonna no wa utau yo_

Yuri paused for a moment to listen to the song, having being taken by surprise by this sudden development. But she quickly snapped back to the operation at hand. "Takeyama-kun!"

Takeyama already knew what he needed to do, his deft fingers moving at amazing speeds across the keyboard, "Got it, and call me Christ!" He pressed the Enter button.

_Naiteru kimi kuso_

_kodokuna kimi kosu_

_tadashii yo_

_ningen rashii yo_

Yuri gritted her teeth as she scrolled down the information about Tenshi's skills recalling the events of their latest trip down to the Guild when she was fighting against her when she using those very same skills.

_Otoshita namida ga_

_kouin wo_

_konna ni mo utsukushii_

_uso ja nai_

_hontou no bakura wo_

Everyone inside the packed gymnasium was silent and payed undivided attention to the lone singer on stage. Yui stared at the beautiful performance, tears silently streamed down her eyes from the emotion and the lyrics. It was simply too breathtaking—the sentiment hidden behind the unequivocal words, the intense passion of her voice—and she couldn't look away.

_Arigato..._

_This is my life._ Iwasawa remembered her pre-afterlife and how she used to perform with her guitar out on the streets by herself as it rapidly flashed in head in bits and pieces.

T_o always sing like this... That is why I was born. Just like how I was saved...I'll save someone else too._ Iwasawa looked up to the ceiling with tears in her glittering crimson eyes. _I finally found it. _

Iwasawa felt a warm light enveloping her her, accepting it without regret.

The guitar fell with a "thud" to the ground as everyone looked at the stage in awe and confusion.

Hisako gaped at the devoid stage, unable to believe what happened in that moment. "Iwasawa...?"

Iwasawa had disappeared.

* * *

…

…

…?

Iwasawa struggled slightly as she opened her eyes. Her vision blurred, slowly becoming focused to her surroundings. The white luster was blinding. It seared into her sensitive pupils. Iwasawa squinted her eyes until the brightness became tolerable. Sitting up from the bed she was on, she immediately realized where she was.

She was back in the hospital room when she died.

_What...? No..._ She was back to this dreadful place, this damned world that her only dream was uncontrollably taken away from. Feeling the heavy weight of her fears and impregnable horror smash into her chest, she buried her face in her knees and cried.

Minutes past, Iwasawa couldn't tell how long it was, before she pulled her flimsy composure together in order to sit back up when she heard the door open.

A nurse walked in with a surprised and relieved expression. She ran out the room calling for the doctor. Iwasawa could her hear woman screech down the coridor. "She's awake! She's finally awake!"

Awake? Was she sleeping?

Now she was confused. Was Yuri and the others just a dream? Hisako, Sekine, Irie, and Yui... Were they just part of her imagination?

Was this just another one of God's pernicious farce?

As Iwasawa was collecting her thoughts, a doctor walked into the room. Dressed to match the alabaster room, the middle-aged man smiled at her and Iwasawa just had the energy in her to scowl at the man.

"Ah, you really are awake. How are you feeling? Are you okay?" the doctor asked, either choosing to ignore her displeasure or not noticing it.

Iwasawa opened her mouth to answer but hesitated.

Would her voice be back?

Or would she have to live in this wretched world without singing?

The doctor spoke up clear the silence. "It's okay, you don't have to talk. It's has been a few months since you fell into a coma. Most likely from the shock from your cerebral contusion."

What? A coma? She was in a coma?

Aside from that, the doctor said "don't have to talk".

... Does that mean her voice was back?

"Well, it's good to see awake and okay. Your parents was about to pull the plug on you. I'm glad they didn't do that sooner," the doctor explained to the girl listening with unabashed astonishment. Before walking out of the ward, he added, "I better notify your parents about this. I'm sure that they will be overjoyed. Oh, I'll be back later to run some tests on you to affirm your health." He slowly closed the door to allow the girl to arrange her thoughts.

Iwasawa sat on her bed, shocked.

Her parents was going to let her die?

Iwasawa gnashed her teeth together and clenched her fist in a tight ball. No, no. Now wasn't the time to think about those two.

But still, she couldn't the believe words coming out from that man's lips. A coma, her parents, her voice... it was all too much.

Iwasawa sighed and attempted to get out from her bed. She wanted to know more about what had happened to her. Upon touching the cold surface of the floor with bare feet, she almost fell because her legs immediately giving out due to the fact she was bed-ridden for months.

She grunted, the plain feat of mearly standing was absurdly draining, and regained her balance by holding on the bed-frame. Iwasawa gingerly walked a few steps to get her legs the feeling of walking again. Her steps were wobbly, like a new-born baby's.

Iwasawa looked around the plain room. There was a few chairs for visitors, wilted brown flowers in a little glass pot, and a drawer full of medical supplies next to her bed. But her gaze fell on the guitar leaning against the wall below a window, light showering on it, giving it a almost ethereal glow in the sun.

Slowly, but steadily, she walked to it, like she was drawn to it.

As she picked the instrument, she tensed up.

What if she also forgot how to play? Would she be able to sing?

Horrible thoughts began to flood her mind.

Her grip tightened in her apprehension. But the only way for her find out was to do it.

Leaning against the wall allowed her to stand upright enough to comfortably handle the guitar in hands. Draping the black strap onto her upper body, Iwasawa took in a deep breath and softly plucked at the metal strings. Muscle memory glided her hands to familiar positions. Chords and notes flowed freely in her head. She breathed a hefty sigh of relief. She could still play.

Iwasawa took another deep breath to clear her cloudy head from any doubts. She began to play the chords of the last song she played.

_My Song_


	2. Explainations

Disclaimer: I don't own Angel Beats T_T

**[EDIT 08.02.2012]**

**Chapter two has been edited. There are light corrections and alterations in this chapter but hardly significant and notable that are glaringly obvious, so I don't imagine that anyone would notice.**

**Still see something that I need to fix or peeved over something I that I missed in the last two chappies? Feel free to drop a message or comment to let me know and I'll get to it soon.**

* * *

Iwasawa opened her eyes to the streaming honey-touched sunlight cascading endlessly into her hospital ward through the window as she strummed rhymically through the last few notes her song.

She sighed contently. She was able to play the guitar still. At least that hasn't gotten taken away from her in this virulent world.

Just as she finished the song, there was a knock at the door. With her open palm, she shifted her weight off of the wall and she leaned against to stand on her stiff feet. The doctor from earlier came inside the ward smiling.

"Ah, I'm apologize, but I couldn't help but stop and listen. I didn't want to interrupt you so I stayed outside until you finished. You are very skilled with the guitar," he complemented.

Iwasawa returned his smile with her own humble grin.

She was able to make someone happy with her playing. That's was all that she needed to hear.

"Your singing was wonderful also. Did you make those lyrics yourself, because I never heard that song before," he continued.

"...Huh?"

"Your voice. It sounds really nice. You should aim to become a performer or a singer someday," the doctor finished, setting a tray of food on the drawer by her bed. "If you do, you should come back to the hospital some time. The children here could use something like that to lift their spirits up."

"What?"

"I have to get going now. And by the way, those tests that I mentioned before. We're ready to start whenever you are. Whenever you feel okay enough to begin, I'll send a nurse down to take in for examination. If all goes well, then you should be able to be released from the hospital today... I mean if you feel like you're ready to." The doctor slid a thin folder under his underarm. "If you decide you want to be discharged today after the checkup, go to the receptionist downstairs to ask where I'm at, so I can sign your release forms. Just ask for Dr. Minamoto, okay?" he explained as he walked toward the door and closed shut with a 'clack'.

Iwasawa was still in a bit of shock. She was singing...? She was so engrossed in her guitar and being able to be play that she didn't even noticed herself singing. She hadn't even noticed that her lips were moving or her vocal cords were actually producing sound.

The girl charily trod to the mirror on the wall across from her, being mindful of her slightly languid legs. She looked at her reflection for a while and began carefully took off the bandages that were encircled around her head.

When she was done, she slowly walked back to window and peered outside.

The world exactly the same from before she was in the the SSS, when she was still with her constantly fighting parents, working at part-time jobs for money and auditioning at studios.

Putting her hand on the cold glass, she stared blankly at the people walking by. Everyone looked so busy with their everyday lives, not one with a thought that a horrific tragedy or disaster could befall on them at anytime. Iwasawa bit her lower lip; she was a little envious of them.

After going through what she did, Iwasawa looked at the world in a different light. A different, dark light.

Ironic, no? How can light be dark? Iwasawa stifled a bitter chuckle.

That's how it was. Light is supposed to brighten up the world. It did just that. It illuminated the dark corners of the world and showed her what rock bottom looked like, what pain and tragedy looked like. It was blinding and many times she wanted to shut her eyes and shun everything out. She tried, and crashed and fell into the pits of the merciless. The world can be so cruel to one. Dashing away their hopes, their dreams, their lives, in a single fleeting instant.

She knew, since she had that experience at a young age. And that is the reason why she was here in the hospital now.

But not anymore.

Iwasawa took in a deep breath.

Time to use her own light and make her own path.

"Okay!"

* * *

"Downstairs..." Iwasawa mumbled to herself as she searched of the stairs. It was late in the afternoon when the assays were done.

She was exceptionally thankful that her health examination was cleared. According to the data that the medical personnel gathered by doing a number of exams checking her overall mental and physical health, she was, surprisingly, fine. No lasting brain trauma and her brain has nearly completely healed from her almost fatal stroke. Her body had went through minor muscle atrophy but that's nothing that a little exercise can't fix.

Since there's no reason a healthy person to stay in the hospital, Iwasawa gladly took up up Dr. Minamoto's suggestion. It's about time to leave this joint.

Upon finding the spiraling staircase, she descended. She held on the metal bar affixed to the side wall since her legs weren't completely recovered. Finally, she reached the end and found the receptionist desk. The lady noticed Iwasawa hobbling over to her and began cleaning up some scattered papers of other patents' information.

The woman smiled kindly at Iwasawa. "Yes? Do you need anything?"

"I'm looking for Dr. Minamoto. I need him to signed some release papers for me."

"Dr. Minamoto should be in his office right now. It's the second room on the left in that hallway. Room 263," she pointed to the hallway to the left.

Iwasawa thanked the receptionist and went down into the hall. When she found the designated room, she knocked on the door thrice.

"It's open," a muffled voice from inside replied and Iwasawa took this as her cue to go in.

The hinges squeaked and the oak door opened. A collection of papers scattered all over the floor, making it hard for Iwasawa to find an appropriate footing. "Excuse me," the girl muttered, omitting a curt comment that popped into her head upon opening the door. Deciding not to enter and staying outside, Iwasawa held on the doorknob to aid in keeping her balance, awaiting for the man's response.

Dr. Minamoto sat at his desk with a ball-point black pen in his hand.

The man smiled as he saw the person who just entered was Iwasawa. "I see you have made your choice then."

Iwasawa nodded.

"...All right, then I'll sign the papers," Acknowledging her decision, the doctor pulled some papers out of a drawer in his desk and began writing on it.

Iwasawa looked around the small space, dimly lit by the afternoon sunlight from the window by the desk. A picture on the windowsill stood out to her the most. There was Dr. Minamoto and a woman beside him. It appeared they were in a park, the picture was tinged with a gilded fade. Signs of wear adorned the bottom corners like creeping tree branches, but not touching the two figures in the center of the image.

"Be sure to exercise everyday," Minamoto advised, eyes still on the papers at his desk, "You body is still weak so you need to make sure that you need to train it to regain your strength. I can let you take a rehabilitation regime for you to try out. I can even register you to use our own rehabilitative faculties here if you want."

"No, I can manage on my own."

"...I honestly don't want discharge you just yet. You've only been awake for a short period of time and I would much rather that you stay a while longer to ascertain that you are truly okay. People that have a stroke, or anything that involves injury to the brain, needs special care and treatment. You'll probably can never be at hundred percent again because you endured such a traumatic experience, especially since you're so young."

"It's alright with me. There's something I have to do and being cooped up here won't do me any good," Iwasawa said. She didn't meant it to come out so cold and terse, but her tongue moved on it's own accord.

"I see..." He pursed his lips, as if he wanted to say something else, but he stayed quiet. When Minamoto finished, he stood, sauntered to the girl at the door, and handed the papers to Iwasawa. "Here you go."

"Thanks," Iwasawa took the papers from his grip. "Thanks for the care," she thanked him once more before turning to walk away.

"You're not going to wait for your parents? I already notified them about their condition. They might want to see you later." She could hear him call out to her. Her chest tighten uncomfortably.

Iwasawa knew that he meant well. It's only natural that he would call them. However, being with her parents, looking at them, would be the worst thing for her right now. Not to mention bad for her recovering health.

"No thanks," she said, hiding her disapproval. "I'll be alright by myself."

She's been by herself since day one. She's used to it, tempered and molded by it. Iwasawa could feel the old man's worried gaze from her back.

"Come by for a checkup at least once every week! Even if you don't want to be in the hospital, just come by until it's completely certain that nothing is wrong!"

Don't look back, she reminded herself. Looking back means doubt and you haven't need to doubt.

She couldn't bear to turn around to answer him. "Okay." Iwasawa said aloud, taking advantage of the reverberation of the walls to carry to response.

She walked out of hallway with as much composure that she could garner and went to the receptionist. She handed her the papers that just got signed.

The woman studied it and stamped it with an approval. "Before you go, go back to your room. A nurse must be done with washing your old clothes. Get changed and then you can leave," she said.

Iwasawa nodded back in agreement. As she began up the stairs again, she thought over her plans.

What would she do now?

She can't go back to her parents, there's no relatives she knew of, no friends that she could she stay with...

Where will she go?

While Iwasawa was lost in thought, she absent-mindedly made it back to her room and entered it. Like the woman said, there was her clothes that she wore before being bed-ridden.

Iwasawa quickly changed and grabbed her guitar. Going down the stairs for the final time, she felt elated, but her feet stopped when she was at the entrance of the hospital.

She made up her mind already. There's no use of her turning indecisive now. Hesitation wasn't going to help her. She was going to fulfill her dream, something she couldn't do before. But now that she has an second chance, she was definitely not going to let it out of her grasp. There was many things she wanted to do so she was going to try her best at it.

Iwasawa took the first step out of the hospital, the first step of many on the uncertain road in front of her. Like hell would God stop her again. Even if she was up against the Creator Himself, she would keep singing.

She squinted her eyes as the glare from the sunlight lowered on her. Iwasawa looked up at the azure sky. It was still as beautiful as ever. If the earth below was dirty, filthy, and malevolent, then the heavens above must be one of the beautiful treasures in the world.

A crow soared above her head, casting its shadow upon her for a moment, and with a gallant flap, it flew into the cerulean empyrean depths.

All right. Now to finish what she had started.

But first...

School.

Iwasawa was going back to school.

* * *

**Yup, Iwasawa going back to school!**

**Please R&R**


	3. Beginning School

**Disclaimer: I don't own Angel Beats**

**Note: I changed a bit of her past so that Iwasawa graduated middle school but dropped out to get part time jobs and audition as a performer, so she is now beginning her third year of high school. More details about her past school days and her school life later on in the story, so continue reading to find out!**

* * *

_Ring Ring Ring!_

The sounds of a school bell catches everyone's attention as students and staff go toward their everyday job, or to others, something like a chore.

A girl looks at the building she has chosen to enter for her studies. Sakigami high school. It was the nearest one to the apartment she was currently renting.

She sighs and begins walking to her new class.

"The uniform here is similar to the ones I had in the SSS. Then again, lots of schools use this type of designs for their uniforms now," She mutters to herself, kinda disappointed in the uniforms that schools used nowadays.

She was dressed in a skirt that reached up to her mid thigh and knee-high black socks. Her uniform was a sailor uniform, much like her old one, with a bright red ribbon tied into a somewhat neat knot.

She stopped at a room that matched the room number on her school schedule. She leans against the wall, trying to calm herself before walking in.

After all, it has been a while since she went to school.

Inside, the class is clamoring to get settled in.

"Alright, everyone stand." A student declared to the rest of the class. "Bow," he directs them and everyone does as he says before sitting down once more.

A teacher walks up to the front of the classroom and clears his throat. "Ok, before we get started, there's a new student I have to introduce," he looks toward the door and signals for the person to come inside the room.

A girl with red, short hair, black wristbands, one on each wrist and a guitar case slung over her shoulder and a book bag in hand enters the room. Several gasps and murmurs are heard through out the class.

"Yo. Nice to meet you all. My name is Iwasawa, I'll be attending this school for now on and since I'm new here, I'll need some help. Anyway, please take of me while I'm here," The girl says in a slightly bored manner.

The class erupts into conversation about the new girl. From the boys, you can hear things like "she's cute" and like. The girls were talking about how cool she seemed.

Iwasawa flipped her hair that was falling into her field of vision. "This wasn't so bad," she thought to herself. She figured to go to school while she was auditioning, just at least to finish high school.

"Any questions for Iwasawa-san?" the teacher asks the class and a few hands shot up in the air.

"What's that on your back?" a young man asks.

"It's a guitar," she answers coolly.

"Where did you transfer from?"

"I came from another school on the other side of town, but I decided to go a different one for a change of pace."

"What's your hobbies?"

"I like playing my guitar and singing. My dream is to become a performer later."

More comments about the new girl erupt in the crowd.

"Is that all?...Then, Iwasawa-san, you can sit in the open desk over there," the teacher points to a desk next to the window in the far right corner of the room.

"Ok, thanks," Iwasawa begins walking to the desk. As she does she felt many eyes following her as she sat down.

She looked at them from her desk. When some of the students caught her stare, they waved. Others looked away in embarrassment.

Iwasawa opened her books and began taking notes on the lesson the teacher just started.

During the middle of his lectures about the problem, Iwasawa unconsciously stared out the window.

* * *

"Iwasawa-san! Hey! Iwasawa-san!~"

Iwasawa didn't realize that it was lunch until a girl called out her name. She turned around to find a two girls from her new class standing next to her desk.

"Ah...you're..." Iwasawa trailed off.

One of the girls smiled. She had short dark brown hair that barely touched her shoulders and hazel eyes. "My name is Ai Koyama. Nice to meet you!" Ai starts and turns to her friend.

"This is my friend Rena Senjou."

The other girl shyly looks at Iwasawa. She had long black hair that curled at the ends and green eyes. The girl had a slightly flushed face.

"...I wonder what's wrong?" Iwasawa questions herself as the girl steadied herself.

She propped up her glasses back into place as she introduced herself. "I-I'm Rena. N-nice to meet y-you." Rena stutters and in embarrassment, blushes a light pink.

Iwasawa grins back at the two girls, happy to meet someone on her first day. "Nice to meet you both."

_They seem nice enough_. Iwasawa concludes from their greeting.

"Hey, you play guitar right?" Ai askes.

"That's right..."

Ai glowed with enthusiasm. "Can I hear you play?"

Iwasawa picks up her guitar that was leaning against her desk. "I guess, but just for a little bit."

"Okay!" Ai agrees excitedly.

"Ai, that's rude. Don't push people to do something you want to do!" Rena scolds her friend.

"Ehh? But Iwasawa-san said she would!" Ai pouts.

"That's because you made her too!"

The two started arguing about what to do and not to do.

Iwasawa sweat dropped.

She looked over at her case and picked it up. She started to open her guitar case.

Ai looks back at her. "Are you going to play?" she asks with interest.

"Yeah, since you asked me too," Iwasawa replies.

"See, Rena! Iwasawa-san is going to play!"

Rena sighs. "Sorry you have to do this,"

Iwasawa shakes her head. "No, it's okay. I wanted to do this anyway," she assures as she begins to check the tuning on the guitar.

When she finished, there was a small crowd of people gathering around her desk, interested in what she was about to do, waiting for her little performance.

Iwasawa takes in a deep breath to sooth herself and begin to strum the strings on her instrument.

_haigo ni wa shatta ano kabe  
yubisaki wa tetsu no nioi  
susume hajike dono michi komu desho  
fly away koko kara  
from now mitsukeru  
rock o kanadero  
tooku o misuero  
ikitsugi sae dekinai machi no naka_

The crowd got quiet and listened closely to her song.

_hoshizora ga saikou no butai  
karasu tachi kaakaa to naku yo  
itsu mo omou yo itsu neteru n daro  
fly away atashi mo  
song for utau yo  
rock o hibikase  
crow to utau yo_

Ai closes her eyes to fully enjoy the song and its lyrics.

_itsumade konna tokoro ni iru?_

_sou iu yatsu mo ita ki ga suru_

_urusai koto dake iu no nara_

_shikkoku no ha ni sarawarete kiete kure_

_zenryoku de mou taoresou da_

_yubi mo surikirete itai _

_demo ne yaru yo konya mo biggu na sutoorii_

_fly away koko kara_

_from now mitsukeru_

_rock o kanadero_

_love o utau yo_

A girl in a fancy white dress stands in the doorway stops and listens.

_itsumade datte koko ni iru yo_

_toorisugite iku hito no naka_

_yami ni tozasareta suteeji de_

_ima kibou no uta utau yo_

_anata datte tsukareteru desho_

_sono senaka ni mo todoketai yo_

_konna kurayami no naka kara no_

_kibou terasu hikari no uta o_

_sono uta o_

Iwasawa stops strumming her guitar, as the song ends and looks at the crowd. The crowd was in awe of Iwasawa and was still in silence.

Rena was the first to break back into reality. "Iwasawa-san! That song was great! Did you make that song yourself?"

"Yeah, I wrote it and used to play this song with others before. But it sound a little different because this is like the acoustic version. It's the first time I tried singing that song like this, so when Ai asked, I wanted to experiment to see if it sounded good. So, I'm assuming you liked it?" Iwasawa explained to her.

"Yup, I loved it! Can you play another song sometime?" Ai exclaims.

"Sure, I'd loved to" Iwasawa agrees.

The crowd begins to disperse and the girl who was standing in doorway walks toward Iwasawa, who was still talking to Ai and Rena.

"That was some show you put on" she starts.

Iwasawa turns to look at her speaker.

A girl with curly blond hair and seems pretty wealthy, judging from her attitude and her clothing.

"Thank you" she says nonchalantly after studying the girl for a brief moment.

Ai suddenly recognizes her face. "Ah! You're Kougami-san from the next class aren't you?"

Kougami smirks. "That's right. I'm Sei Kougami from class 2-1. I'm the school's number one performer/singer. Nice to meet you." she finished her introduction with a loud laugh...or chuckle?

"That's quite a reputation you have there," Iwasawa says.

"Well, if it's true, it must be told, right? But, of course, everyone knows I am, " Kougami boasts. "I'm get going now, it's almost time for class. I look forward to seeing around, Iwasawa-san," and Kougami excuses herself and walks out of the class.

After watching the blond stroll out of the classroom, Ai trembles slightly.

"...I don't like her," Ai declares, "she's so...stuck up, it's disgusting."

"Now, Ai-chan. Be nice." Rena scolds once more.

"But she was so...eww!" Ai's face had disgust all written over it.

"At least she introduced herself. But number one performer...huh... I wonder if she really is..." Iwasawa thinks aloud.

"I doubt it," Ai says.

_Ring Ring Ring!_

"Ah, that's the bell. Let's go take our seats, Ai," Rena persuades.

As the two take their seats, Iwasawa looks out the window once more.

"Number one performer..." she thinks to herself. Then, flashbacks of her and GirlDeMo flood back into her mind.

Iwasawa sighs. How she wants to perform with her band again, like before. Singing Crow Song helped her remember those times.

"Maybe someday, I'll be able to play with a band again," Iwasawa whispers ans sits up to start taking notes on the new lesson on the board.

* * *

**How do you like Iwasawa singing Crow Song acoustically? Try to picture. I think it's sounds okay...**

**Anyway,**

**Please R&R!**


	4. Nostalgic

**Disclaimer: I don't own Angel Beats**

* * *

Iwasawa yawned as she looked up her bed to her alarm clock, that didn't exactly go off. But she had gotten used her routine of waking up around the same time so didn't matter. _It's already been more than three months since I started school. Maybe I don't an alarm clock anymore..._she thought to herself, now seeing the alarm clock as too much of a hassle to set and stop each night and morning.

7:08...

She stayed in bed for a few moments, due to morning laziness, but decided to get up to get ready school, which was about to start in about a hour and a half.

Vermilion eyes slowly gazed up to the bright sunlight shining though the dark blue shutters and squinted from the glare.

As Iwasawa walked to the kitchen she couldn't help but check on her precious guitar that was in a corner of the room, sitting on a guitar stand.

She kneeled down to touch it for a brief moment, to make sure it was okay before standing up and continuing to walk to the kitchen. The red head opened the kitchen refrigerator only to find a few slices of bread, some jam, orange juice, and a couple eggs.

She pondered for a moment, trying to decide what she can make with this limited amount of food she had left, before grabbing some bread slices and putting them into the toaster.

Iwasawa poured herself a glass of juice and sat on the nearest chair to wait for her breakfast.

"Looks likeI'll be going grocery shopping soon," she sighed as she got up to look for her wallet.

When she found it in a drawer in her room, she opened it and found some money, but not enough to last her for a while.

_Guess I should find a part-time job as well._ she thought and went back into kitchen to eat.

Afterward, she got dressed in her usual school attire and took her guitar and book bag.

She left the small apartment and locked the door.

As she was walking down the stairs, since her apartment was on the second floor, a voice called out to her right when she was about to step back on the ground again.

"Iwasawa-san! Going to school early today?" the landlady asked the girl. Iwasawa cracked a smile towards her.

"Yeah, I tour around the school to get myself used to the building and where everything's at so I know where to go" she answered kindly. She still didn't remember where everything in the school was at and some locations of staff rooms, in case she ever needed anything.

"It's nice you're enthusiastic about going to school, but remember to be careful on your way there, okay?" the landlady advised.

"I'll try to keep that in mind. Thanks for worrying," Iwasawa started to walk off before waving goodbye to the middle aged woman.

The woman smiled until she couldn't see the red hair from her position before she went back to work.

Iwasawa strolled around the peaceful neighborhood. It doesn't take long for her to get to school, so she took her time getting there, stopping occasionally to greet the other neighbors along the way.

She shifted her bag to her other hand and adjusted her guitar strap to a more comfortable position. When she arrived at school, gazed up the huge clock on top of the building.

7:46. Just less than hour until school officially starts.

Iwasawa didn't see anyone else in the school yard or the inside the building so she decided to go up to the rooftop to practice her guitar.

Upon opening the door, Iwasawa found that someone else had beat her to the roof.

The person swirled around, slightly surprised by the presence of another, but her surprise quickly turned into happiness.

"Iwasawa-san!" Ai called out, waving her arm.

"Yo. Good morning. You're here early," Iwasawa responded.

"Well, you are too," Ai replied to her greeting.

"Ah, that's because I wanted to practice to make up for last night. I didn't get to because of homework and I'm just settling in my new apartment," Iwasawa casually said, completely forgetting that she was supposed to tour around school. Then again, music was more important to her than school.

"Hmm... It's nice that you're so dedicated to your music. I kinda jealous how you work so hard for something. Not many people, including me, don't have that kind on determination to do that. We usually just spend our time doing what we like to do the most," Ai sighed."but, then again I like slacking off so it doesn't matter!" and she laughed it off.

"...Thanks, but sometimes, I would rather do something like that. But, I don't know. It's a bit of a complicated feeling,"

Ai looked at her and turned back to face the school's gated entrance. Her face beamed with happiness when she saw who was arriving at the gate.

"Ah, there's Rena! Sorry, I'll going first, okay?" and off she went to meet her friend.

Iwasawa watched as she scrambled down the stairs and sweat dropped when she heard a crash on the bottom of the stairs, implying that she fell the last few steps.

She took out her guitar from her case and began to play, to ease her mind before class starts.

* * *

"And, so and anyone answer this problem?" the teacher asks his students. He just finished writing an EXTREMELY long problem out on the board. He chose to do a particularly hard problem to give his students a challenge.

He looked around the room for any volunteers. The teacher smirked when he saw no hands in air wanting to see if they can figure the problem out. He randomly chose one student who was spacing out and deep within their own thoughts.

"Iwasawa-san! Come finish this problem" he called out.

Iwasawa's eyes flew to meet his. When she quickly realized she was called up to do the problem on the board, she slowly got up and strolled over to board. She swiftly scanned the problem, thought for a brief moment for an answer before writing an answer on the board right below the problem. When she was done, she walked her desk and sat down.

The rest of the class was in awe once more, including the teacher. She finished a hard problem with ease. Everyone was still trying to figure it out. The teacher cleared his throat.

"Ah..., um, y-yes, that is correct. Thank you," he complemented before turning away.

Some of the students were staring at Iwasawa but turned away when the teacher started to write down another problem on the board.

_That was kinda easy...but is it supposed to be this easy? Is this what school is all about? It's been a while since I went to one, but this isn't really much of challenge. Maybe because I used to self-study a lot?_ Iwasawa thought, not at all impressed with this school's education and teachings..

At lunchtime, Ai and Rena came over to Iwasawa's desk.

"Hey, were you always that smart?" Ai asks the red head.

"Smart? What are you talking about? I just used to self-study a lot in the past since I didn't have much to do at home. I mean, before I got my guitar anyway. My teachers always told me to study, so I did." Iwasawa responded leasurly. "It's nothing really."

"Even so, you're amazing, Iwasawa-san! You're good at just about everything! Yesterday, at gym, you were so cool!" Rena beamed.

Ai nodded in agreement. "You can play the guitar, good at academics and a fluent English speaker. In English class, you were so awesome!" Ai continued.

"But I really don't need this much praise," Iwasawa said modestly.

"But it's all true!"

"Yup, yup! You should be proud!"

Ai paused for a moment from her praising. Her expression showed that she was thinking hard about something. When she seemed like she done thinking, she turned to look back at Iwasawa.

"That reminds me. I been wondering about this for a while, but I never knew when to properly ask. What's your first name? Iwasawa is your family name right? But I never heard your first name. What is it?" Ai questioned, curious of the new transfer student.

Iwasawa's eyes widened slightly at the question. She fell quiet, her bangs hiding her expression.

"Iwasawa-san? Are you okay?" Rena asked worriedly.

"...Ah, yeah,...it's just... I can't answer your question" Iwasawa said, her voice quiet.

"Eh? Why?"

"Well, that's because... I don't remember it,"

* * *

**After School**

Ai and Rena was in the classroom, thinking about today's events. Ai broke the dead silence.

"...Iwasawa-san doesn't remember her own name...I wonder what happened," Ai wondered aloud.

"Who knows, but probably better for us not to dig to deep into past. She might have a had hard life." Rena suggested. Little did she know how right she was.

Back with Iwasawa, she was walking to a nearby convenience store by the apartment she living at.

She had taken up a job there since the pay was just enough for her living expenses and little left over for material things if she saved up. Also, while she works there, she would have an employee discount, even though it was slight, but little things do add up.

When she finished her shift, it was around 11 at night. She had also finished her shopping as well. She had bought enough food so it will last for about two or so weeks.

With her guitar on her back, grocery bags in one hand and her book bag in the other, she went back to her apartment. She sat the bags down to get out her keys to unlock the door. When she got inside, she stored her food in the fridge, placed her guitar on the stand and got changed into her regular clothes. When she was done, she climbed to bed and gazed the ceiling.

So many things happened to her. She hadn't had a lot of time to think them over. So she would need time to sort them all out. The first thought that came into mind was Ai's question.

_What's your first name?_

Iwasawa shifted her body in her bed so she laying stomach-down. Since her cerebral contusion, she had parts of her memory blurred out in her mind so couldn't recalled them. But over time, she was able remember most of them. The only thing she just couldn't place her finger on was her first name. She recently had gone to visit a doctor for answers to her problems and if she could do anything to help recover her last piece of memory, but the doctor had only told her that it'll return in time and that she'll have to wait or have something to trigger her lost memories.

It was strange. Upon waking up from her coma, she could recall her time with the SSS, with Yuri, Hisako, Otonashi (the no memory boy), and the rest of the members. Immediately after a few days, memories of the parents, her supposed death, her brief time performing out on the streets and auditioning around recording studios, and her miserable life.

Yet, one memory never came back to her. Her first name. It troubled her deeply and it made it a little difficult to explain to the staff at Sakigami that she had no first name, only her family name.

Iwasawa shook her head form her uneasiness. _I should be thinking these thoughts. It'll come back to me someday. I shouldn't worry, and besides I just got used school life again. I can't let myself be down on these things!_

She abruptly stood up. _For now, I'll just do what I can and reach my dream._

She picked up her bag that was beside her bed and took out her homework.

_Better get started then. _she thought as she took out her textbook and began writing her answers down on the paper.

* * *

**The Next Day**

Iwasawa tapped her pencil rhythmically against the hard wooden desk. She was studying English for a test in 4th period. _The sunlight sure is bright out_ _today._ she thought as the light shined down. A shadow then blocked her viewed of the light upon her papers. She viewed up to see the person's face.

It was Ai and Rena, with a bit of a sad, worried look on their faces and all of a sudden, bowed.

"W-what's wrong?" the redhead asked, surprised by their sudden action.

Ai looked at Rena before speaking.

"Iwasawa-san... I wanted to apologize about yesterday. I shouldn't have questioned you about your past that you probably didn't want me to ask. I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings in anyway," Ai apologized honestly.

"...What are you talking about? It's not your fault. You were curious so you asked a simple question. Don't worry about," Iwasawa comforted.

Rena stepped into the conversation. "But-" she started but was cut off by Iwasawa's firm voice.

"I said don't worry about it. And...it's not that important right now anyway," Iwasawa smiled, to show her appreciation and gratitude for their feelings.

Iwasawa stood up and placed a hand on each of the girls' lowered heads. She patted them and grinned once more to them. The two girls saw this and blushed a rosy red and continued to stare at the floor to hide their faces. Iwasawa took her hands off their heads and traveled to the door.

"I'll be at the rooftop if anyone needs me," she announces to the class and and slid the door shut behind her.

Passing the cafeteria, a colorful poster caught her attention. The girl stopped from her pace to read it.

_School Fesitval: only a week left!_

_School festival, huh? _Iwasawa studied the poster with great interest.

"Oh, my. Iwasawa-san, are going to enter the festival?" a voice from behind her inquired.

Iwasawa swirled around to see who it was.

Sei Kougami.

The blond laughed dramatically and pointed her index finger towards Iwasawa. Iwasawa sweat dropped. "Y-yes? Did you need something?" she asked, after regaining her composure.

"Are you going to enter in to festival?"

"Ah, I was thinking about it... why?"

"Ohohoho! Then this is the perfect chance then!"

"...? What is?"

"If you're going to enter, let's have a challenge! A challenge to see who's the best singer in this school! A contest!" she practically shouted out for the whole school to hear.

Iwasawa but at bit surprised by her outburst but she couldn't pass up a challenge. "Does the winner get anything?" _It won't be any fun if there's risk or prize in the end._ Iwasawa reasoned. And knowing Kougami-san, she would have something up her sleeve.

Kougami smirked maliciously. "Whoever wins gets the title of best singer/performer in this school and has to obey the winner for a week."

"That's a high risk. You sure you want to risk your title so easily?"

"Well, I have confidence in my performance. I'm just about guaranteed to win!"

Iwasawa scowled slightly her confidence. It was a bit irritating to listen to her words sometimes.

"Then, are there any rules?"

"Only one: Bring it all you got and show no mercy!"

"Hmm...If your that confident then it'll rude for me for me to back out. I accept your challenge," Iwasawa was getting excited. A contest...a competition! Her blood was boiling with excitement.

"Then whoever's performance the crowd likes the most will the winner. Is that acceptable?"

"Of course. We are performing for the people anyway. We have to make it enjoyable for them."

"Excellent! Then our contest begins next week, on the day of the festival! Prepare yourself for defeat!" and with that, Kougami walked away, her laughter brimming with confidence(and bit of a bother to other people around her since it was so loud).

_All right! I better get started with a idea for the performance. _Iwasawa thought and she went to roof to think.

* * *

**The Next Day...**

The homeroom teacher clapped his hands together in order to get the class' attention. He cleared his throat before speaking in a booming voice.

"Okay, okay. Everyone, look here for a moment then,"

The entire class looked towards him. Well, all except one.

Iwasawa directed her attention outside. She didn't feel like listening to the teacher at the moment. She rather look outside and see the naturalness and beauty of the organisms living their lives. They always had a way to entertain her. Though it was becoming a habit.

"Before getting started. There's matter that I must discuss with you all. We are having another new student entering our class today," He looked over the door. "Come in,"

The door slid open. As it did, Iwasawa finally directed her attention towards the subject of the matter. Her eyes widened and gasped when she saw who it was. Her pencil clattered to the ground.

_No way... Why? How?_

Ai looked over at Iwasawa from hearing the _"thmp" _from hearing the dropped pencil and saw her expression_. Iwasawa-san...?_

The new student was a girl with short brown hair that was tied into a short ponytail. She had a black band on her lower thigh and white socks that reached up to her mid calf. A case similar to Iwasawa's was gripped in her hand, slung over her shoulder. Her eyes were sharp but she had a friendly expression on her face. She smiled and waved as she introduced her herself.

"Hey. Name's Hisako. Nice to meet you guys. I'll in your class for now on. Take care of me, 'kay?" The brunette scanned the class.

"Hisako... Hisako!" Iwasawa abruptly stood up from her seat, surprising those around her.

Hisako's eyes swerved to the familiar voice and widened as they saw who it was. "Iwasawa?"

The two pairs of eyes met each other as wave of nostalgia passed through them.

Hisako was the one to break the silence. "Nice to see you again, eh, Iwasawa?"

Iwasawa smirked at her best friend. "Yeah, it's been while hasn't it, Hisako?"

* * *

**Hisako's back!**

**Please R&R!**


	5. Reunions

**Disclaimer: I don't own Angel Beats!.**

**How you guys like the story so far?**

**As this is my first fanfiction, constructive criticism is really appreciated. xD**

* * *

"Hisako!" Iwasawa called out to her best friend and co-founder of GirlDeMo.

"Iwasawa?" Hisako responded, surprised to see her here in this class, or even school to be exact.

"U-um...Iwasawa-san? Do you know Hisako-san?" the teacher asked, his voice a little shaky after the brief reunion.

Iwasawa looked over at the teacher. That's right, they were still in class. She cleared her throat.

"Yeah, Hisako is my friend from a while back,"

"Hey, hey. Don't you mean best friend?" Hisako corrected. Iwasawa rolled her eyes and rephrased her sentence.

"Sure okay. BEST friend." she empathized on 'best'.

"You don't sound like you mean it. I'm hurt," Hisako replied playfully.

"Aren't you picky?"

"Just want to hear the truth,"

Iwasawa smirked at Hisako. Hisako knew she wouldn't admit that she was her best friend, or at least while they're in class.

"A-and so continuing on... Any questions for Hisako-san?" the teacher cut in, as they were going into their class time.

Hands flew up in the air. Many asked the same questions they did with Iwasawa. Hisako just the same, smoothly, as if she anticipated the questions.

One particular question wasn't part of the expectations.

"How do you know Iwasawa-san?" Rena asked.

Hisako didn't really know how to answer that. She didn't expect Iwasawa to be here in the first place. _Hm...I know Iwasawa because we met back while we were dead. We created a band called 'Girls Dead Monster!' together with the purpose of distracting the other students' attention while the rest of our team goes out to battle Tenshi, someone who gets her powers from God. Our performances are usually used as disguise so the Shinda Sekai Sensen or SSS "lifts" meal tickets so we can eat._

Is what Hisako could say, but she's sure no one will believe her, so instead she went with this:

"Iwasawa and I met at a concert and later became friends. Soon, we made a band together with other people but it got disbanded after Iwasawa moved away,"

The class was quiet.

_Was that good enough?_ Hisako thought. She scanned over the class. It seems that their brains were processing the information they were just told of.

When they finished, they nodded their heads in agreement. _I guess it was._ Hisako thought, but a bit disappointed in the class for not being able to process in information quicker.

She turned to the teacher. "So where's my seat?"

"It's the open desk over there," he points towards the object.

"Ok then," Hisako thanks and walks over the desk.

She takes her seat, a few desks away from Iwasawa's. She sighed, she wanted to sit next to her, to catch up on her current life now. _Guess it'll wait till later._

The teacher tapped his pencil on the table to recapture everyone's attention.

"Class is starting. Get out your notebook and textbook. We're going to start a new chapter,"

* * *

A few minutes before the period ended the teacher just remembered something to tell the class.

"Your homeroom teacher told me that his class wasn't doing anything for the festival. The school festival is less than a week away. Are you sure that this class has nothing to do for the festival?" he asked.

"...Eh?" most of the class responded. The teacher sweat dropped. "Do any you want to do anything for the festival?" When there was no response, the teacher sighed.

"Just to let you know, all the other classes are doing something for the festival. I rather that you decide to do something, but it's your choice, not mine," and with that, he left the room.

_So this class isn't doing anything for the school festival..._ Iwasawa thought.

Hisako glanced at Iwasawa and turned a page in her open notebook. _Hmm... something for the festival..._

After the next period, it was passing period to lunch. Hisako stood up from her seat and strolled over to Iwasawa, who was putting away her textbooks and writing utensils.

"Yo! Long time no see!" Hisako waved at her when she got near. Iwasawa looked up to face her. She smiled. "It's been a while." she answered coolly.

Hisako pulled a chair from a nearby desk and sat next to Iwasawa. "To think I'll see you here...that was unexpected," Iwasawa put away her bag.

"Yeah, it's surprising to me too,"

"Maybe we're connected by some red string of fate or-"

"Don't get any weird ideas," Iwasawa stopped her.

"Just kidding, just kidding... Anyway, this class didn't decide to do anything for this festival then?"

"Looks like it. It seems the class president transferred out right before I entered. After the president moved, I guess the class didn't feel like going through all the trouble of setting a cafe or some sort of setting for the upcoming festivals."

"Too bad. I was looking forward to helping out during the festival," Hisako looked over shoulder and saw some of the students approaching Iwasawa and her. Ai and Rena were coming this way.

"U-um, Iwasawa-san?" Rena started. Iwasawa knew what she wanted so she began to answer to question before she asked it.

"Let me introduce you guys. This is Hisako, my best friend. Hisako, this is Rena Senjou and Ai Kouyami," Iwasawa stated. Hisako smirked.

"So you added 'best friend', huh?"

"Only because you wouldn't let it go if I didn't say that," Iwasawa stated bluntly. Hisako turned her attention back at the girls in front of her. "Nice to meet ya," she grinned at them.

Ai grinned back at the friendly new student. "I'm Ai! Hope we get along!"

Rena adjusted her glasses. "I'm Rena. Pleased to meet you,"

"So, about this festival...Any details why only this class is doing nothing for it?" Hisako asked.

"Ah, our previous class president was planning to do something, but due to her sudden transfer, we couldn't, or actually didn't want to do anything so...well, as you can see..." Rena trailed off.

"So, that's the situation so far. But in reality, there is some students in here that want to set up a cafe of haunted house, since they'll feel like we'll be a disappointment to the school if we're so lazy," Ai commented.

Iwasawa stepped into the conversation. "Is there a reason why they just say they want to something?"

"That's the problem. There's some people that kinda threatened them to not saying anything, so they wouldn't do any work," Ai clenched her fist. "Those selfish bastards," Rena placed a hand on her shoulder to try to calm her.

"...Who's this guy?" Hisako asked as her expression darkened. Rena points to a young man laughing with other guys around him in front of the blackboard. He had short dark brown hair and and had a basketball in hand.

"Him. Kotou Takeshi, He's took over as the new class president and his the vice president of the basketball team."

Hisako stood up from her chair and begins to walk over Kotou.

"H-hey wait! Hisako-san?" Rena exclaims from her sudden movement and stands up as well. Iwasawa put her arm in front of her to stop her from going to Hisako. "Don't worry. Hisako will take care of it," She says to her, but the worried faces of Ai and Rena remain. _Will she really be okay?_ Ai wonders.

Hisako stomped her foot down when she was about a few feet away from Kotou. He stops laughing and turns to face her. "What? Do you need anything, cause if you don't, leave. You're in the way."

"I'm in the way? What about you? Shoving your own desires onto others so you can have your way," Hisako retorts.

"Hey. Watch your mouth. You have some nerve, talking trash to me," he growled as he takes a step forward toward Hisako, anger rising.

"I absolutely hate people like you, they make me sick," Hisako spats.

Kotou grits his teeth together. "Why you-!" he stops mid sentence as he throws a fist to her face.

Ai and Rena gasp, as the rest of the class, except Iwasawa. She was calmly staring at the scene Hisako created. Well, not that she minds. She put her elbow on the desk and rested her head on the palm of her handas she watches the scene with interest.

Hisako caught the punch in her left hand. "What? Is that all you got?" she asks as she grips the fist in her hand tighter, slightly twisting it with her grip.

"...!" Kotou hides his pain and throws another punch with his free hand. Hisako lets go of his fist and grabs his incoming arm and judo throws him over her shoulder and onto the floor. The class looks in shock as Kotou was on the ground, lost of breath from the throw.

Hisako kneels down and roughly grabs him by the collar so she can look eye to eye with him. Her eyes were unwavering as they met with his scared, blue eyes.

"I suggest you start consider what the people around want before I decide to throw you out the window, instead of the ground," she whispers in his ear before shoving him back on the cold, hard floor.

Hisako dusted herself off and right when she stood up, a teacher burst into the room. "Is everything okay? I heard a crash from the next room."

Hisako smiles at him. "No, it's nothing. Kotou-kun just tripped, that's all. Sorry to worry you," she lies. She looks at Kotou. "Isn't that right, Kotou-kun?" she asks him, who was still on the floor. He nods furiously. "Y-yeah. I tripped, sorry," he apologizes. The teacher glances back and forth between Kotou and Hisako before accepting the explanation. "Okay, be careful," he advises and leaves the room.

Ai and Rena runs over to Hisako. "Wow! That was amazing Hisako-san!" Ai praises. "That was so cool how you threw him so easily!" Rena continues. Other students goes over to Hisako to thank and praise her for her performance. Iwasawa slowly walks over Hisako, who was in the center of the crowd.

"Good work," The red head says. The brunette grins at her and gives her a thumbs up. "Hey, no problem."

Iwasawa turns to face Rena with a hand on her hip. "So, are you going to participate now?"

Rena's face brightens. "Yeah!"

"But, what should we do?" Ai questions.

A student ponders for moment before speaking. "Since the festival is in a few days, lets do something that is quick and easy," he suggests.

The rest of the class agrees to the idea and settles on the idea. Ai recommended a cafe or a restaurant-like idea, since many of the students know how to cook from the cooking classes in school. After a bit of planning, the class selects to do a cafe. Iwasawa observed her classmates excitedly talk about about the the food menu and decorations to design the classroom with to make it look attractive to possible costumers.

_Everyone looks so excited_, she thinks. Her train of thought was then interrupted by a hand waving in her face. Hisako was leering at her, to get her mind back into reality.

"What?"

"Nothing, it's just you seem out of it."

"Really? I'm was just thinking about things."

"What kind of things?"

"It's not important." Iwasawa suddenly recalls something she was going to ask Hisako earlier before.

"Hey, you don't happen to know what happened to the others, do you?"

Hisako's expression lightened. "Yeah. I met up with Sekine and Irie on the day I was submitting my entry form for Sakigami. It turns out that Sekine moved in with Irie and her grandmother in the next town. They met in the same hospitals and Irie offered Sekine to moved in with her, since she didn't have a place to stay at."

"Then they're both here in this school?"

"Yup. The next class. But I don't know what happened to Yui."

Iwasawa abruptly grabs Hisako's wrist and heads out the door. "H-hey. Where are we going?" Hisako asks nervously.

"Isn't it obvious? We're going to see Sekine and Irie," Iwasawa explained and shortly arrives at the next classroom and lets go of Hisako's wrist. She slides the door open and walks inside. Upon entering the classroom, which was exactly the same as her own, she scans the room for Sekine and Irie. She spots them laughing and talking in a corner of the room, secluded from everyone else. She begins to make her way towards the two, with Hisako following closely behind..

Sekine picks up the sound of feet coming their way and twists around to see who it is. She falls silent. Irie notices this and follows her eyes to the direction her friend was gaping at. Irie tugs on Sekine's sleeve. "Sekine, do you see what I see?"

"I don't know, but I think I might be going crazy, cause I see Iwasawa standing right in front of me."

"I see her too, but I don't know if it's really her."

"Irie, pinch me. That might help."

"Sure, but you have to for me too."

The two begin to pinch each other, trying to make sure they weren't seeing things. Iwasawa sweat drops at their random reaction. "Is that how you greet someone you haven't in a long time Irie, Sekine?"

The girls focus at the red head and Hisako, who was trying, but failing to hide her sniggers. When they finally process in their brains that Iwasawa in front of them was real, tears started to form in their eyes.

"Iwasawa?" Irie asks uncertainly. Iwasawa smiles at them. "It's been a while."

"Iwasawa!" Irie and Sekine jump the red head in joy, sending all three of them onto the floor. Iwasawa let out a small cry of surprise. Hisako was no longer trying to suppress her snicker and burst out laughing when they hit the floor. Irie and Sekine was pouring their eyes out from seeing their long lost friend and was embracing Iwasawa tightly. Iwasawa thought about pulling away, but after seeing her friends start crying, she relaxes herself and allow them to let their tears flow out until there was none left.

When they finally stopped (which felt like forever for Iwasawa and beginning to feel uncomfortable), they stood up, Sekine and Irie still clinging onto Iwasawa like she was going to disappear again. Hisako stopped laughing and was drying the tears from her fit. "Geez, you guys are so weird sometimes," she says.

"Hisako, why didn't you tell us that Iwasawa was here?" Irie asks, pouting. "That's mean. You don't tell us anything," Sekine agrees, "Well, that's because I just met her today too. I had no idea she was in this school until I saw her in my new class," Hisako explains to them.

"Can you guys get off me now? It's getting weird." Iwasawa asks, sensing the looks from the other students.

"Nope!" Sekine replies happily.

"Cause if we do, you might disappear again," Irie says and hugs her even tighter.

"Looks like you're having quite a bit of trouble there, Iwasawa-san," a voice from behind them calls out. Iwasawa recognized this voice instantly.

"Kogami-san. Did you need something?"

Irie looks at Iwasawa. "You know Kougami-san?"

"Yeah, for a while now." Iwasawa replies. "Kougami-san is our class." Sekine points out.

"Iwasawa-san!" Kougami interrupts Kougami sticks out her index finger to her. "Are you ready for our duel?"

"Ah." _I was so caught up with seeing the everyone again, I almost forgot._ Iwasawa thinks. "I can't really say I'm ready, but I will be. I haven't been thinking about my performance yet."

Hisako looks at her. "Duel? Performance?"

Kougami starts to explain her contest she started. "Yes, a contest. A duel, a challenge, a showdown! I have challenged Iwasawa-san to a contest of who is the better performer. Whoever wins gets the title of best performer and idol in school. But the loser has to be the winner's slave for a week."

"Sounds fun." Hisako says. _I guess it's ok to do these things once in a while._

"Oh, that's right. I have already prepare your do-to list for when you lose," Kougami brought out a scroll and allowed it to drop onto the ground. The scroll rolled along the floor and the paper stretched out from the corner of the room they were in all the way to the door. The four sweat-dropped while Kougami chortles, pleased with her list.

"That's a long to-do list," Sekine says, not sure to be amazed that Kougami had the time to write everything down on a paper or worried for Iwasawa if she loses. _But Iwasawa won't lose._ She reasons. She wasn't the former leader for Girl Dead Monsters for nothing. At every show they put on, the auditorium was packed, filled with students from the school, breaking the rules to watch them perform. Iwasawa on rhythm guitar and vocals, Hisako on lead guitar, she was on bass, and Irie playing her drums. A twinge of nostalgia hits her. Ah, the good old days.

Irie sighs, "It's too bad, though cause Iwasawa isn't going to lose," she states bluntly. "She probably has more stage experience than you. I bet when you're up on the stage, you'll freeze up and do a crappy job at it."

Hisako nods in agreement, "That's right. You won't win. Hope you have a great time serving Iwasawa,"

Kougami glares at them. "That's what you think. I heard Iwasawa sing before. She's not that great, in fact, there shouldn't even be contest, since this isn't a not even a competition worth winning. The only reason why I started the whole thing is to see Iwasawa-san's skills. But I guess she doesn't have any, now that I think about it."

"What did you say?" Hisako fumed. The atmosphere between the two intensified. Hisako glowered at the curly haired blond. How dare she insult her!

"I'm just saying what I saw. Is there a problem with that?" Kougami asked.

This girl was on Hisako's last nerve. She opened her mouth in response but was stopped by Iwasawa, who was silent they whole time they were arguing.

"That's enough," Iwasawa ordered them to stop. This was starting to give her headache. "If you doubt me that much, then I'll have to change your thinking," she pulled herself away from Sekine and Irie's (death) hold and began to walk towards the door. "Hisako, class is going to start soon. We better get going. And Sekine, Irie, come to our class when school's over. There's something I have to discuss with all of you."

Irie and Sekine looked at each other. And watched her walk out of the room. Hisako ran to catch up with her.

When she did, she put a hand on her shoulder to stop her from continuing. Iwasawa stopped in her tracks.

Hisako looked at the ground. "Sorry, I got carried away back there."

"Don't worry about. I'm not mad at it, I'm grateful that you guys defending me, she turned to face the brunette.

Hisako raised her head. "I see... Then after school...what did you want to talk about?"

"I'll tell you when Sekine and Irie are there. Now let's go. We're going to be late,"

"That's right! Let's run!"

* * *

**After school**

Most of the class was still busy with the preparations form the upcoming festival. They were making plans.

The door slid open, revealing two long haired girls, one with darkish blond hair and the other with lavender-like color hair. They both a black band around one of their thighs. The blond carried a black bass case on her back and other had a drumstick, one in each hand. They looked through the room, searching.

Ai noticed them and walked up to them. "Hi. Did you want something from our class?"

Sekine spoke up. "Yeah, we're looking for Iwasawa and Hisako. Know where they at?"

"You know them?"

"Yup, they're our friends!" Irie grinned at the nice girl.

Really? Well, let's see..." Ai thought for moment to remember where they went. "I believe they asked by the teacher to do something just a few minutes ago. You can wait for them here."

"'Kay!" the girls exclaimed in unison. Irie's eye looked all over the room. _Looks like they're getting ready for the festival as well._ She thought. Her thoughts were broken by a question.

"Hey, how do you know Iwasawa-san?" a girl with glasses asked, standing next to the girl who them told to wait.

"We were in band together," Sekine answered this time.

"Iwasawa-san was in a band? That explains why she's so good at guitar and singing."

"You heard her sing before?"

"Yup, on the first day she entered Sakigami. This person made her to," She points to the girl with short dark hair. "Oh, by the way, I'm Rena Senjou, and that is Ai Koyama."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Sekine! And this is Irie. We just transferred in today. We're in the next class," Sekine greets, while Irie flips her hair to keep it from getting in the way of her vision.

Rena looks over Sekine's shoulder. "That case...is it a guitar?"

"Huh? No, no," she laughs. "It's a bass."

"A bass? You don't see many people playing basses anymore."

"Yeah, well, I like playing bass. And Irie plays the drums."

"That's cool. Makes me want to play a instrument."

"If you learn, then maybe we can play together."

"Maybe."

The four laugh, in unison. Sekine was happy. She was able to make new friends on her first day.

**Out in the hallway...**

Hisako and Iwasawa was on their way back to class to meet with Sekine and Irie. They stopped when they heard a familiar voice.

"Ehh? Why not?"

Hisako rubbed the temples of her head. She couldn't believe it. Iwasawa knew what her friend was thinking. She recognized that voice anywhere. They changed direction toward the voice. When they passed they corner, they saw who it was.

A girl with long pink hair and two matching bands on each of her thighs. A pointy tail was swirling around and around as she pouted. On each of her wrists, she had shackles with chains still attached from it. A guitar case smaller than Iwasawa and Hisako's was in one of her hands. "Why can't I play here?"

"That's disturbance to other students and teachers," the teacher tried to reason with her but was failing.

"But school's out! There's no one here to bother!" she pink head continued.

"Yui!" Hisako called out to the girl who was making quite a bit of a fuss. Yui swerved around.

"Hisako-sempai? And...Iwasawa-sempai?" Yui exclaimed in disbelief.

She ran toward Iwasawa and glomped her so hard she fell to the ground once more. _Ugh, so many hugs today_. Iwasawa thinks, tired.

"Oi, Yui! What were doing?" Hisako asked. She turned to teacher. "Sorry about this. We'll take care of it," The teacher looked a little nervous leaving the pink haired girl alone, but left to finish the rest of his work before the day ended.

"Yui, what happened?" Iwasawa questioned. "And, also can you get off me? It's getting hard to breath."

"Ah! Sorry sempai!" she immediately stood up and released Iwasawa.

"So, what were you doing?" Hisako asked again, arms crossed.

"I was practicing a song when that teacher came over and told me to stop!" she whined.

"It's good you want to practice, but it's better to do it somewhere else, 'kay?" Iwasawa advised.

"Roger!" Yui smiled and hugged her idol again.

"Ah, that's right! Yui you want to come with us? Irie and Sekine will be there" Iwasawa asked. _Since she's part of the diversionary team too. She'll know about what happened when I was gone._

Yui beamed and nods furiously, "Yeah, yeah! I want to come!"

"Then, we should hurry up and go. We kept them waiting for while now," Hisako states and starts running. "Hey! No fair!" Yui chased after her with Iwasawa keeping pace with her.

* * *

**Please R&R! I want to know what everyone thinks about this story so far and their tips to help make this a better one!**


	6. Nightmare

**Disclaimer: I don't own Angel Beats!**

…You know what, I don't feel like putting a disclaimer for every chapter so to make everything clear...

**I Don't Own Angel Beats!** (no matter how much I want to T_T)

* * *

"Hey, Yui. How long are you going to cling onto her?" Hisako asked the younger girl.

"It's fine, it's fine. Right, Iwasawa-sempai?" Yui looked up at Iwasawa. The pink haired girl was, in fact, clinging onto Iwasawa's waist tightly. Hisako sighed.

Iwasawa laughed lightly, amused at the two. She didn't mind Yui, actually she was relieved. Relieved to see some of her former comrades.

The three was walking down a hallway. On their way to meet up with their other friends, Irie and Sekine, who was waiting for them in Iwasawa and Hisako's class. When they reached the door to the class, Hisako knocked on the door twice, muttering a "excuse me" before sliding the door open.

No one was left inside except four young girls conversing.

Irie looked up from the desk she was sitting on and peered to look at the people who just entered the room. "Ah, Iwasawa, Hisako. Welcome back."

"What are you talking about? We weren't gone for that long." Iwasawa said. Sekine spoke up when she saw the pink hair and pointy tail near Iwasawa's side. "Yui? Is that you?"

Yui finally tore away from her sempai. "Yup! It's Yui-nyan~!" She exclaims, with the hand gestures to go along with her intro. Ai and Rena chuckled. Ai stopped when she heard her cell ring. Hse stands up from her seat.

"Sorry, I have to go now. Nice meeting you, Sekine, Irie. Let's go, Rena." she motioned the glasses girl to follow. Rena bowed slightly and waved back at the rest of the people. "Bye!"

Ai and Rena walked past the ones who just entered and slid the door shut. Outside, Rena turned to face Ai. "Why did you have to leave?" she asked, a bit hesitant to leave the rest behind.

"My mother called. I have to help out at the house. And..." Ai looked back at the classroom they were walking away from. "They might need some time to catch up."

Back inside the classroom, all five of the girls gathered around in a small circle. Hisako and Iwasawa was sitting atop desks opposite from each other, while Sekine, Irie and Yui sat in chairs. They were alone in the big room.

Iwasawa was the first to talk. "So, This has bothering me, but I didn't want to ask while other people were here, assuming they wouldn't know anything about this. Why are you guys back here in this world, not with the SSS?" She had to know.

Irie fidgeted slightly. Sekine and Hisako looked at each other nervously. Yui stared at the ground. None of them didn't know how to answer. Iwasawa looked at them in confusion.

"Ah, well..." Sekine started, scratching the back of her head. Hisako cleared her throat before speaking.

"Actually, we don't really know what happened exactly. To be honest, I have no idea." Hisako managed to spit out. Iwasawa eyed them uncertainly, not sure whether to accept the explanation.

"See, we were in the middle of a operation." Sekine began. Irie nodded and continued her sentence. "Yuri and everybody else were out doing a new operation and she had Girls Dead Monster to cover for them, since the fighting was out in the woods near the school."

"During the concert, there was a few 'bangs' and 'booms'!" Yui added, with the sound effects. "We didn't know what was happening, but we continued with the concert."

"Of course, some of the NPCs got curious and went out to investigate." Hisako said. "We were losing their attention, so Yusa had to shut the doors so none of them could get caught in the fight or get hurt."

"The crowd soon began to form a riot." Sekine said.

Yui cringed slightly. "It was so scary. Some of them even began to climb on stage so some of the SSS members that were in the sports hall had to try to restrain them."

"And then there was a big flash of light and everything got dark." Irie said, still trying to recall the scene. "After that, my memory got a little fuzzy and when I woke up, I was in the hospital."

Iwasawa knew what she was talking about. When she awoke from her coma and my memory was jumbled up.

"I met Sekine a few days later, when I was able to get released from the hospital. We talked for a while and she soon moved in with my grandmother and me since she didn't have relative she knew of that she can stay with." Irie added to her previous statement.

"So, that's out situation so far." Sekine finished. "Sorry we don't have anything important to say."

"It's okay. I didn't expect you to know everything." Iwasawa comforted before moving on to the next subject.

"After I was gone, what happened to GirlDeMo? You didn't disband since you held a concert before returning to this world."

Yui jumped up from her seat, one arm raised in the air. "I took over as the new singer!" she exclaimed and sat back down in her chair. She kinda surprised everyone with her outburst.

Iwasawa smiled at Yui. _So, Yui really did become the singer._ She did have a thought that she would become the next singer for the band.

"So, how was your first concert than? What was the song you played?"

Yui blushed lightly. "We played your last song, _Thousand Enemies_. I-it was nerve wracking. Having all those people watch you play."

"But, you did a good job for your first time." Hisako said and crossed her legs, smiling slightly.

Yui grinned at her compliment. "Really?"

"Yeah, but you messed up on few of the notes, but it wasn't noticeable for the NPCs to hear." she commented. "Other than that, things went pretty good."

Yui once again leap in joy. "Yay!"

Irie then had a thought. "Wait, since Iwasawa is back, does that mean she'll be vocals again? Or will Yui stay as the singer for GirlDeMo?"

Yui stopped her jumping and the room fell silent. Iwasawa had to break the silence. It was becoming awkward. But in doing so, she said something she didn't truly want to say.

"...I don't mind Yui being the singer." Iwasawa lied smoothly.

She really wanted to sing with her band again...but...

Iwasawa saw how happy Yui was when she said she was the new singer. She didn't want to take that away from her. And it was Yui's dream to become a professional singer.

The four stared at Iwasawa in shock, mouth gaping open. Iwasawa looked back at them in wonder. "W-what? You're looking at me weird."

"But... that's because..." Irie trailed off from her sentence. Hisako rushed over to Iwasawa and place a hand on her forehead.

"Are you okay? Do you have fever?" she asked a bit forcefully.

Iwasawa swept her hand away. "Of course I'm okay. What's with your reactions?"

"That's because we thought you would want to be the leader of GirlDeMo again. After it's your band." Sekine said. Yui glanced back and forth between the girls.

"Well, if Yui wants to continue being the leader, it's ok." Iwasawa smiled over at Yui.

Yui stood frozen in place and mechanically shook her head in disagreement.

"No! You can be leader again!" Yui said frantically.

"Eh? Why? Don't you like being the vocals for GirlDeMo?" Irie asked, curious why she decide not to continue in the band._ She seemed like she enjoyed it._

Yui stared at her feet as she spoke. "That's because I only joined Girls Dead Monster since Iwasawa-senpai is my idol!"

Hisako blinked. "That's why?"

"Yeaup! As a Iwasawa fan, I know all the lyrics to all the songs and..." Yui looks over at Iwasawa and grins "...in admiration of Iwasawa-san for amazing singing." A tinge of pink spread through her cheeks.

"Yui..." Iwasawa whispers.

She smiles back at the younger girl. "Thank you."

Yui brightens. "Welcome! And Iwasawa-san, you can be Girls Dead Monster vocalist again."

"You sure?"

"Yup!"

Iwasawa raises her eyebrow in doubt, but eventually accepts. "Ok."

Sekine and Irie grab Yui and drags her into a little corner in the room so Iwasawa and Hisako wouldn't hear them.

"Hey, Yui. That's not the only reason, right?" Sekine inquires. _There has to be another reason. I'm sure of it._

"Well, if you really want to know." Yui pulls their heads together. "With Iwasawa-senpai back, I can go back to selling GirlDeMo merchandise for profit." she whispers with a evil glint in her eyes.

"You sell merchandise from our band?" Irie asks. "When did you..."

"When GirlDeMo started getting popular. I had to hide everything so Yuri wouldn't take it away."

"Is that why we always had extra amounts of money?"

"Yup!"

Sekie and Irie didn't know what to say. _So she's been using us the whole time!_ They both think as Yui skips back to Iwasawa and glomps for another time. Hisako calls out to them.

"Hey we're leaving now!"

Irie and Sekine slowly walk back to Hisako.

"Is something wrong?" Hisako asks.

They shake their heads. " Nope, it's nothing."

Hisako looked at them questioningly before grasping her school bag. "Then, I'll see everyone tomorrow then. Bye." She strolls out of the room.

"Me too! Grandma's waiting! Let's go Sekine!" the two run out right after waving their goodbyes.

Yui bowed slightly. "Then I should going too!" she hugs Iwasawa one final time before hurrying out.

Iwasawa sat on the empty desk, running a hand through her hair as she watches from the window parting to go their own ways. After a few minutes of silence, she stands and rolls up her sleeves.

"Well, I better get to work then."

* * *

**The Next Morning...**

Iwasawa awoke abruptly. She was panting hard, her breathing fast and heavy. Her body was covered in a cold sweat. She placed a hand over her heart to try to calm her way too fast beating heart from exploding in her chest

_Why? Why did I remember that now?_

Flashbacks from her dream, or rather nightmare invaded her mind.

Flashback:

_ Her parents had been arguing once more, had finally reached a boiling point. Her so-called father grabbed a nearly empty beer bottle off the table and pointed it at her mother. Her mother cried for help. _

_Iwasawa stopped polishing her guitar and rushed into the kitchen and tried to get the bottle away from her drunk father, who was dangerously swinging it in all directions._

_Iwasawa quickly grabbed the hand holding it. Just as she did her father threw a fist into her abdomen, causing her to fly off and slam hard into the wall. Her mother fell to the ground from another punch from her spouse. Upon impact with the wall, Iwasawa coughed violently, lost of air in her lungs. She clenched her side which was throbbing with pain from the impact as she struggled to get up to try to stop her crazed father._

_Her father was repeatedly kicking and stomping on her fallen mother, who was coughing up blood after a strong kick to the stomach. Iwasawa tried to block out the screams of agony from her beaten mother as she tried to steady her legs. She held on to a nearby table for help._

_When her mother had stopped moving and screaming, he turned his attention to his daughter. He raised the bottle in hand and swung it downward. It hit the floor and broke in to large pieces. Iwasawa managed to dodge the attack in time but a swift roundhouse kick from her father had struck her in face. Iwasawa let out a sharp yelp but clicked her jaw shut to prevent any sounds of pain from escaping her mouth. She didn't want any of the neighbors to get involved in this. Blood trickled down from her forehead and onto the tiled ground._

_He picked up a large shard from the glass bottle and threw it to his daughter. The shard impaled her left leg. Iwasawa gritted her teeth and tightly grasped her leg, trying her hardest not to scream. She forcefully pulled out the sharp object from her injured leg. Blood poured out from her wound like river and onto the floor, creating a large puddle of it around her. He staggered over to Iwasawa until he was towering over her._

_Iwasawa took the shard in her hand and sliced his calf, not deeply, but enough for him to fall. She used this chance to get away. She slowly got up and limped over the phone hanging on the kitchen wall. Her father quickly got up and tackled Iwasawa when she was about to dial a number. He glanced around the kitchen. His eyes stopped at the table. He got up and took a empty glass beer bottle from the table. Iwasawa was still on the floor in excruciating pain. Her hand was in a tight ball, nails digging through her skin until her palm had started to bleed. He slowly came back his daughter, panting heavily. Once more, he raised the glass over her. Iwasawa's eyes widened as the bottle came down. She felt a huge pain in her head before blanking out._

Iwasawa buried her head in her knees as she trembled from recalling the event. That was day that caused her to lose her voice.

It turns out her father called the police and told them that he and his "family" was attacked by burglars. When the thieves found out they had nothing of value to them, they began to attack him and his family.

When her mother tried to tell the police the truth, Iwasawa's father glared at her threateningly. That's how he never got caught from the crime he committed. Iwasawa and her mother was too afraid of the man, so that event was only known to those three. No one else knew so no one could help.

Iwasawa lifted her head from her position and took a glance at the clock. _6:38 _She wouldn't be able to fall back to sleep after that.

_Well, this a good enough time. Guess I should get ready then._

_

* * *

_

On the way to school, Iwasawa turned around behind her to a voice calling her name. A smile tugged at her lips. Hisako and rest was several feet behind her.

"Good Morning." Hisako greeted when they caught up to their red haired friend.

"Same to you." Iwasawa replied. "What are you guys doing here?"

Irie tucked a few stands of her lavender hair behind her ear. "Sekine and I take the train from the station near here."

"You take the train?"

"Yup, we live in the next town. And we just happened to meet Hisako and Yui."

"Yui jumped in front of them. "I live a block away from this neighborhood and it's the shortest route to school."

"And I live with my aunt around here" Hisako pointed out.

"Really? That's good to know."

Yui hugged Iwasawa around her waist. "Now I can stalk you home and find out where you live!"

Everyone sweat dropped at Yui's comment.

Hisako cleared her throat. "Anyway, about Kougami-san. What are you going to do for this little duel thing she set up?"

Iwasawa thought for a moment. "I haven't given it that much thought."

Yui looked at them in wonder. "What are you talking about?"

"Oh yeah, you weren't there there." Iwasawa remembered. "Well, me and a girl named Kougami challenged me to a duel to see who's the best singer. The loser has to obey the winner for a week." she explained briefly to her kouhai. Yui nodded, understanding the situation. "I see, I see."

"Hey, hey can we be part of your performance?" Sekine asked excitedly.

Irie beamed when she heard Sekine's words. "Yeah! I want to help!"

"But..." Iwasawa started but Hisako cut her off.

"Kogami-san didn't say anything about us helping."

"And I can take care of the lighting and effects!" Yui said. Everyone looked at Iwasawa for her reply. Iwasawa sighed in defeat. "All right, you can help." She knew they wouldn't let her say no.

"Ok!" Hisako fist pumped. "Let's practice after school then."

"We can use the empty classroom near the staff room." Irie said.

Iwasawa looked at Irie. "We can use it?"

Sekine smiled devilishly. "We just persuaded the teachers nicely and they agreed to it. Also, that's where Irie's drums are kept."

_Just what did say to them? _Iwasawa thought, sweat dropping slightly at her friends, who had a evil glint in their eyes.

"Great! Now all we need to do is find out what songs to perform." Yui said, her eyes blazing. "We won't lose! She's going down!"

"Look, you've gone and got here all excited." Hisako elbowed Iwasawa playfully. She brushed her elbow away. "Hey, that's good thing." Hisako flashed a smile once more. "Yeah. Now, you're guaranteed to win."

Iwasawa eyed her suspiciously. "Oh, were you excepting me to lose?"

"Nah, I wasn't."

"Oh, really?"

"Really."

The sounds of bells broke their conversation. "We're going to be late! Run!" Sekine cried out. The five began running to their respective class. Iwasawa called out to the ones who weren't in her current class.

"Meet us in our class at lunch!"

"Sure!" Irie responded.

"Okay!" Yui yelled out, as she was about to enter her class.

Hisako and Iwasawa ran through the halls, stopping at the class entrance to catch their breath before entering.


	7. Basketball

The school festival was almost here so all the classes went off to work on whatever they were doing for the festival, whether it be a haunted house or a little restaurant. In class 2-2, the teacher had finally stopped lecturing the class about doing a good, no, GREAT job with their cafe for the festival, since they were the last class in the entire school to choose something.

"That's right, before I forget..." the teacher open a drawer in his desk and pulls out a lot of thin papers. "These are the tickets for the festival. I'm giving each of you four each. Please give them to your family members. Without them, they have to buy the tickets to get in..." he motioned some students to pass them out to the class.

After the ticket were passed out, the teacher left, leaving the class to do whatever they needed to do and prepare. Iwasawa stared at her tickets that were spread out across her desk. She took one and lifted it to look at it closely. _What do I do if this? There's no one I can give this to..._

Seeing that her "family" has gone off to who knows where, these tickets have no use for her. _How about the landlord lady? But then again she probably has work to do..._

Iwasawa furrowed her brow. _Maybe I can give them away to someone who has a lot of family members and needs more tickets. _Iwasawa sighed. Maybe she should just throw them away after all.

Hisako noticed her friend's puzzled expression for her desk. She got up and went over to her, to see if she could help with her problem. "Hey. What are you thinking about so hard?"

"These tickets. I thinking about throwing them away since I don't need them. What about you?"

"I guess I'm giving to my aunt. She could give the rest to any friends or something."

Iwasawa slouched back on her chair. "Want them, then?" she waved the tickets in front her face. Hisako took them from her hand. "I can give it Yui if you want."

"Yui?"

"Yeah, she can find someone to give them to."

"Sure, okay."

With that, Hisako stuffs the tickets into her school bag. Just as she did, Ai and Rena appeared from behind her. " Hey, you guys want to go the gym? There's the basketball tournament today." Ai asks excitedly. Rena whispers to Iwasawa. "She just going to see the basketball players, though. Don't mind her fan screams okay?"

"Ah, I see..."

Ai heard the comment that Rena made. "N-no, i-it's not like that!" she stutters with a bright red blush on her face.

Hisako smirks. "Oh, really? Cause your face is awfully red." she commented.

"N-no it's not! A-anyway, let's go. We're going to miss it." Ai says and begins to walk out.

Iwasawa, Hisako and Rena look at each other. "Ah, youth and its hormones." Hisako says relaxed. And they begin to to follow Ai to the gym.

* * *

**At the Gym...**

There wasn't many people inside when the four came inside the gym. Other than the basketball players of Sakigami and a few others waiting for the game to start. Rena looked around the large area. "The tournament starts in about 15 minutes. We should wait over there." she points at the bleachers which were empty.

Iwasawa nudges Ai with her elbow. "Are you should it's okay for us to be here? What about the festival? We should be getting ready for it."

"It's okay. The festival thing is a few days away. We have lots of time. Anyway, the whole is really excited about it, so they're going to spend most or even all their time getting ready. We'll be in the way if we stay there and do nothing."

"I see..." Iwasawa was still worried about the subject at hand. Maybe she should go back and try to help.

"Hey! Iwasawa, Hisako!" a voice calls out. Iwasawa and Hisako turns to face the person calling them. Sekine, Irie and Yui was standing by the door. Yui runs over to them with Sekine and Irie taking their time following the energetic girl.

Yui stops once she was in front of Iwasawa and Hisako. She looks over at Ai and Rena. "Who are you?"

Ai smiles at the pink haired girl. "I'm Ai, a classmate of Iwasawa-san and Hisako-san." Rena props her glasses back into place. "And I'm Rena. I'm also Iwasawa-san classmate. Nice to meet you."

"Ah! Now I remember. You guys were with Sekine and Irie before." she says with a warm smile on her face.

"Yup." Ai replies. "So are you here to watch the game too?"

Sekine and Irie finally caught up with Yui was near her side. Sekine decided to answer Ai's question. "Yeah. Our classes are done with their preparations and met up with Yui on the way here."

_So we're the only class not done yet... _Hisako thinks to herself. But it couldn't be helped.

"Argh!" a voice cried out on the basketball court.

That took the girls' attention. They quickly turn to see what happened. A player was on the floor with a scraped up knee. He grasped it tightly in pain. A few players gathered around him.

Kotou, the vice president of the basketball team walked over to the injured player and held out his hand. "Be careful next time, 'kay?" his voice had venom oozing out and his eyes were dark. The player slapped his hand away. "I can stand up by myself." he growls, sensing the sarcasm in Kotou's voice.

The practice begins once again.

Hisako looks angrily at the scene. "That bastard! I bet he did that to the guy!"

"Well, this basketball team does a have a little bit of a bad reputation." Rena points out.

Irie looks at Rena. "Really? How?"

"At most of our games, at least one player from the other team is gets injured or hurt. So there seems to be some fear from the other teams whenever they have to play against Sakigami."

"Ah!" another cry comes from the court. This time, a first year was his back on the ground, his elbow with a nasty bruise on it. Kotou glares over him and stomps on his back. "Hey, don't get in my way next time." he says with a dark aura around him. Then he turns away and shot the ball from where he was standing. The orange ball circled around the bright red rim once before going inside the net with a "_swoosh!" _

Kotou jogs over to retrieve the ball. He was a few inches away from picking up the ball with his hand, when suddenly a hand comes out of nowhere and takes the ball from his reach. He looks up to see who it.

A familiar face glowers at him.

"What do you think your doing? Shoving your teammates around like that?" Hisako growled.

"What, you saw that? It's their fault. They were in the way. And you have to be rough with your team to make them learn a lesson or two on how to play correctly."

"So playing correctly means shoving around other players to the point they get hurt?"

"That how we usually win our games." Kotou had no sign of regret of pushing down his team member to the ground or stomping on them.

Hisako gritted her teeth. She was mad. This guy always had a way to make her really, really mad. "Then," she dribbles the ball with her right hand. "How about I show you how to really play?"

Iwasawa sighed. Now Hisako done it. The red head begins walking off the bleachers and onto the court.

"H-hey, Iwasawa?" Irie asks her. "What are you doing?"

"Helping Hisako" Iwasawa replies casually, adjusting rolled-up sleeves to make sure they wouldn't fall. Yui runs down the bleachers and fist pumps the air. "I'll help too! Let's go beats those losers!"

Iwasawa smiles at her enthusiasm. "Okay. Let's go." They begin to walk over to the brunette. Irie frowned.

She pitied Kotou. "Looks like that Kotou guy is in trouble now." she says. Sekine nods her head in agreement. "Hisako is scary when she's mad like that."

"But it's three against the whole basketball team." Ai says worriedly. Sekine smiles back at her. "Those three are enough to win against them. Don't worry. Just watch." she says relaxingly. But her words didn't comfort Ai and Rena.

Back on the court, the tension between Hisako and Kotou was growing.

"Hey Hisako." Iwasawa called out. In a few moments, both her and Yui was beside her. "We'll help you."

"Bring it on!" Yui roared. Hisako flashes a grin at them. "Thanks." She turns back to Kotou. "So that's that. Shall get this started then?"

* * *

So the small game that Hisako started had begun. It was Hisako, Iwasawa and Yui against five regular basketball members. The odds of Hisako winning was seemingly small and against the regular basketball team members along with the vice president made the odds even worse. Of course, Hisako didn't pay any attention to that. She, in fact, considered it a small advantage, in her eyes. Not much of a problem.

Rena and Ai looked at the court with great concern for their new friends, who had gotten themselves in a big mess. It was three against five regulars. Rena shifted in her seat uneasily. Sekine and Irie on the other hand, was perfectly calm and was staring at the scene with great interest. Ai nudged Irie softly with her elbow. "Are you sure this is okay?" she asks.

"Didn't we say not to worry about it? Just watch, you'll be surprised." Irie says and looked back at the court.

One of the basketball members who wasn't participating in the game, stood by the large scoreboard, ready to keep track of the points. He cleared his throat before speaking. "To win, your team must get to 10 points, understand?" All the players on the court nodded. "Okay there will be 15 minutes on the clock. Any team with the nearest amount of points to 10 by the time limit will win." He set the timer on the scoreboard to 15 minutes. Another member brings out the orange, striped ball to the center of the court. "Ready? Begin!" The young man thrown the ball high into the air. The game had started.

Yui and another player jumped into the air to get the ball. Yui touched the ball slightly with her fingers and threw backwards toward Hisako. Hisako caught the ball and began to dribble the ball down the court. Iwasawa ran slightly in front of her.

Hisako easily got pass the first three players. Kotou was running up from behind to try to snatch the ball away. Right before he got close enough to smack the ball away from her hand, Hisako bounce-passed the ball to Iwasawa. Iwasawa caught the pass and performed a lay-up. The ball went smoothly inside the rim and into the net. As Iwasawa passed Hisako, the two shared a high five before spreading out around the court.

As one of the members, number 28 (making up random numbers) dribbled the ball carefully down the court, he saw a flash of pink briefly and stopped to look at the flash of color. Yui was already down by the basket and shot the ball.

The score: 2-0 with about 13 minutes left.

Yui gave a thumbs up to her teammates before handing the ball over to Kotou, who by the way wasn't happy with the game so far. _These stupid, pathetic excuse for basketball players!_ He thought angrily. Yup, you can say he was pissed at his team's ability to get the ball from a few girls. He glared at some of them and gripped the ball tighter.

Kotou chest-passed the ball to player 15 , who as soon as he got the ball, quickly ran pass the girls to lay up a basket.

Hisako smirked. _This will an interesting game, the way things are going right now._

Hisako passed the ball over to Iwasawa. Iwasawa dribbled the ball half court and passed it over to Yui. Yui jumped high in the air and shot the ball from the 3-point line. It circled around the rim once and dropped inside. "3-1" Yui announced as she went back to the other side of the court.

* * *

Ai and Rena stared in awe, mouths gaping. Iwasawa and the others were really good. Irie noticed their surprised expressions. "See? Nothing to worry about." she said. Ai pointed weakly at Hisako. "How are they doing so well against the basketball regulars?" she asked. "Well, Hisako is naturally athletic, if that's what you to know. I remember she and Iwasawa who beat the whole baseball team before." Sekine recalled. "I remember that! That was amazing!" Irie added.

"Now that I think about it, how come, you guys aren't playing with them?"

"I'm more a studying person, sports isn't really something I excel at, right, Sekine?"

"Well, I'm more of an average person in sports and at studying. I just be in their way, something like a burden, if I go out here with them. You see, Ai?"

"Ah... I guess I can understand that..."

Rena looked at the scoreboard. Hisako and the others had 7 points while Kotou had 5. Only 8 minutes on the clock as well. _They can win this!_ She thought excitedly. Then she noticed her surroundings. The gym was filled with people watching the game with great interest. _When did all these people come in?_

"Ugh!" Hisako's cry of pain echoed through the large gym. She slid across the gym floor. "Hisako!" Iwasawa ran over to her friend who was struggling to get up. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I guess." Hisako replied, though her response wasn't very encouraging. It was kinda shaky. Yui glared at Kotou, who was grinning evilly to himself.

"Hey, you bastard! What do you think you're doing!" Yui was mad. The audience watching looked down in horror. Hisako looked at injury. Her knee wasn't bleeding, but it had a huge bruise on it along with a scrape on her right arm. She stood up slowly, trying not to put any extra pressure on her leg.

"Can you still play?" Iwasawa asked. She didn't want Hisako to injure herself even more. Hisako nodded slowly.

"Yeah, I can."

"Are you sure?"

"I said I can, Iwasawa. So just let me play. I'll be fine."

Iwasawa doubted her, but eventually, reluctantly decided to let do what she wants. "Ok, but if something bad happens, it won't be my fault. I tried to stop you."

Hisako smiled weakly. "Really, Iwasawa, you to need to relax." Hisako says. As soon as she stood up straight, a sharp pain attacked her side. She gripped the area from where the pain was coming from.

"Hisako?" Iwasawa asked.

"It's nothing. Let's go."

The game continued. Rena was anxious for the game to be over. Hisako was limping slightly as she ran across the court.

Kotou ran next to Hisako. "Are you okay? I bet your arm isn't doing to so good. Maybe you should sit out." he suggested, though Hisako knew what he was trying to imply.

"It's okay. Just to let you know I'm ambidextrous, so I can use my left hand too." she laughed to piss him off. She ran ahead of him. _Idiot_! She thought. There's no way she was going to use, even with this handicap and to that guy.

No, she never intended on losing in the first place.

Iwasawa glanced over at Yui. Yui saw her gaze and understood. They were going to finish this game quick. Yui looked at the clock.

8-7 with 5 minutes left. Kotou's team was one point away from being in a tie with them.

_All right, time to kick some ass_! Yui thought evilly to herself and sprinted forward. As Kotou's shot was in the air, almost to the basket. Yui leaped up and smacked the ball down. Iwasawa caught it and dribbled to the free point line, where she shot the ball and made a basket.

"Yay! Go! Go!" Irie and Sekine cheered. "You can do it!" Ai cupped her hands around her face to make her voice echo for Iwasawa, Hisako and Yui to hear.

_Just one more point._ Rena thought. _And _the_ game will be over. _She breathed a sigh of relief.

Iwasawa wiped sweat off her forehead. _4 more minutes..._

Hisako stared at Kotou, who had the ball in his hand, trying to predict his path. He ran to the left and passed the ball over his team member. She ran near the key and waited for him to make his shot.

Player 28 jumped a few inches off the ground for more power in his shot. His shot hit the backboard and the ball bounced right off. Hisako took the rebound and ran as fast as she could to the other side, twisting her body to avoid anyone attempting to steal the ball away.

Kotou was taken off guard by how fast she ran. _Wasn't she supposed to be injured? _He thought angrily to himself. He clenched in his fist. _There's no way he was going to lose to this girl! _He ran to catch up with her.

Hisako sprung up in the air and shot the ball from the three point line.

It looked like a dramatic moment right there. Hisako fell back to the ground awfully slow. Looks like gravity really wanted to stretch out the moment for this. Everyone had their eyes and attention on this shot.

The ball hit the backboard dead in the center and fell into the net.

_Whoosh!_

The buzzer went off loudly. Hisako, Iwasawa, and Yui had done it. They won. The crowd roared with excitement form the amazing game they had witnessed. Hisako, Iwasawa, and Yui high-fived each other before walking back to the bleachers. They were tired from running around so much.

Right as Hisako found an open seat, she collapsed. Sekine and Irie went over to her with water bottles in both hands. Irie gave one each to Yui and Iwasawa. "Congratulations." she beamed.

Yui was ecstatic. She fist pumped happily into the air. "We won!"

Iwasawa patted Irie on the head. "Thanks."

"You guys deserve it, Iwasawa."

Sekine handed a bottle to a exhausted Hisako. "Here." Hisako took the bottle gratefully. "Thank you."

She opened the bottle and drank from it. "It tastes great after a good exercise!" she said happily. Sekine sat next to her. "Good job." she complimented. Hisako gave her smile of thanks.

Ai and Rena came over to them. "You guys were amazing!" Ai blurted out as soon she reached them. "It was a fantastic game. I wish I had a camera or something." Rena said.

"I agree. It was very interesting game indeed." Someone had commented from behind Rena. A young man with spiky, messy hair and green eyes stood in front of them.

"President Takehiro!" Ai fan screamed. Her face was a dark pink color.

"There he is. Ai's crush." Rena whispered loud enough for Iwasawa and Irie to hear.

Irie studied Takehiro. _He seems to a nice guy... if he's nothing like Kotou, anyway._

"And? Who are you? Hisako asked rudely, a bit irritated that someone interrupted her conversation.

Takehiro bowed slightly. "I'm sorry. I should introduced myself. My name is Takehiro Kinjo. I'm the basketball team's president." he pointed to team. "Anyway, I came over here to apologize about Kotou's behavior."

"Is that how your team usually play? Violently?" Iwasawa asked.

Takehiro bowed again. "Yes, that's kinda of my fault. I allow them to that. I don't go to games very often due to certain circumstances, so Kotou lets them go wild and usually hurt the other players." He glanced down at Hisako's knee. "You're hurt?"

Hisako rubbed the back of her head. "Well, yeah. Some things happened during the game. It's not that bad though. It just looks like it."

"I see...Well, don't worry. I'll make sure that everyone involved in that game, including Kotou will be punished for their actions."

"Ah... thanks."

Kotou turned around to leave, but he stopped because of some tugging from his sleeve. Sekine held his sleeve, preventing him from leaving. Irie was right to her.

"Hey, Takehiro." Sekine started.

"Hm? What?"

"Can we call you Hiro? Takehiro is too long to say." Irie asked. Sekine and Irie brought up their "sparkly-eyed-puppy-dog" face, their hand clasped together, as if begging him.

Takehiro sweat dropped. "Y-yeah, I guess so."

"Okay then." Sekine let go of his sleeve. "Then, we'll be seeing you around... maybe. Bye!" Sekine and Irie waved goodbye happily at him. Yui poked Ai's side. "Hey? Are you back yet?" she asked. Ai was still blushing and was frozen from where she was standing, admiring Takehiro.

"Irie, Sekine. What's the matter with you? Asking something like that?" Iwasawa scolded. "That's rude."

Irie pouted. "But his name is too long." "Yeah, we're too lazy to say out his whole name." Sekine added.

"But my name is kinda long and you still say it whole." Iwasawa said.

"Of course we do. You're special." Irie said matter-of-factually.

"I'm the exception?"

"Yup!" Sekine beamed.

Iwasawa sighed. "I can't keep up with two."

"Hey Iwasawa?" Yui called out, even though she was a few feet away from her.

"What is it Yui?"

"I think we lost Ai."

"What?"

Ai was still in her dream-like state. _Was her eyes sparkling?_ Iwasawa thought.

* * *

**Well here's a Hisako chapter. I'll put some chapters up about the rest of the characters later. Bye for now. **

**R&R!**


	8. School Festival

**I'm going to put a little disclaimer for this chapter.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters or songs in this story. Everything belongs to their respective owners. I don't own Angel Beats or any other anime that is in my story.**

* * *

Looks like we made it in time." Hisako leaned back in her chair. She looked around the room.

It was nicely decorated with potted plants here and there. The desks were neatly aligned with plain white sheets atop. A small space in the back was for the waiters and waitress to ready the order that was to be given to them.

Iwasawa crouched down with a pen in one hand and clipboard in the other. She quickly re-checked the supplies to make sure they had the enough for the day. "...Water, check. Sugar, check. Milk, check... And, that looks it that's it." She stood up slowly. Today's going to be good day.

She took a glance at the clock. Just about thirty minutes until the official school festival opening. So far, everything is going smoothly.

Rena entered through the opened door. "Iwasawa-san, Hisako-san."

Hisako walked over to her, followed by Iwasawa. "What's wrong? You need something Rena?" Hisako asked.

Rena held out a bag to each of them. "Here."

Hisako and Iwasawa took the bags.

Iwasawa looked inside. "This is?"

Ai popped out from behind Rena. "Those are you guys' costumes."

Hisako tilted her head slightly. " Costumes?"

Rena nodded. "Yup. Everyone's going to have to get dressed appropriately. This a cafe after all. We must have the employees look nice."

"Then what are you wearing?" Iwasawa inquired.

"The guys are going to wear a black vest and a blue tie with their uniforms. The girls are also wearing uniform but with an apron." Ai answered. She pointed to the bag in Iwasawa's hand. "And that's what going to wear."

"Both me and Ai and a few others in the class worked together to make those." Rena added.

Ai pushed Iwasawa and Hisako out of the classroom. "Now then, enough chit-chatting. You have to get ready." And she closed the door. "Don't come back until your done changing, okay?" her muffled voice came from the room.

Hisako sighed and turned to Iwasawa, who was looking through the contents of the bag. "Shall we go then?"

* * *

** 15 minutes later...**

Iwasawa looked at Hisako. "This is completely different from what I thought."

"Really? I like it." Hisako said. "It makes us looks kinda cool, doesn't it?"

"I guess."

They were walking back from their lockers after putting away their regular clothes after changing into their "costumes" for the day.

Iwasawa slowly slid their classroom door open. "Hey, Ai, Rena."

"Hm? Wha-" Ai had began to shuffle her feet to face the direction of the person calling out to her, as did the rest of the class, as they as well were curious to see who was at the door, she stopped her in sentence right in the middle.

Hisako leaned against the wall, arms folded. Iwasawa stood by the door frame next to her, eyes closed.

Iwasawa was wearing a black blazer featuring a bright red tie. Her hands were stuffed in the pockets of her black slacks. To finish her outfit was black shades, which she wore with style, of course. Hisako had a similar outfit, except with the color a dark blue and a dark purple tie.

Hisako, pleases with the effect that her and Iwasawa's new outfit had on the class, smiled. "Well? Does it suit us?"

A few members inside the room blushed, boys and girls, at their cool expression.

Ai nodded furiously, a light pink hue had crept up on her face. "Yup! It suits you guys to a T!"

She looked at Rena. "Looks like it wasn't a waste of time, making those, Rena."

Rena gave a thumbs up toward Ai. "I knew it would look good on those two!"

Ai returned the gesture with her own. "Now everything's perfect for today."

Vermillion eyes fluttered opened, to take a look upon the expressions of her classmates' faces. Judging from the conversation she just heard, she began to like the new clothing a little more.

"And? What are we supposed to do?" Iwasawa chirped up from her brief silence. Ai quickly took to answer. "You're supposed to pick up orders from our costumers, like all the other waiters and waitresses."

"Then was there a reason for our individual outfits?"

Ai chuckled lightly. "Haha... there is, but that's a secret." she put a finger in front of her lips, motioning that she wouldn't tell anything about the matter. _With them around, we'll sure to get a lot of costumers!_

"I see..." Iwasawa said, slightly confused.

"HEY! Where do you think you're going!" screamed a voiced from the next class, followed by the loud slamming of a door.

Irie ran into the room, flustered. She ran toward Iwasawa, who as well as many others looked at her, befuddled by a certain outburst.

She nearly jumped into Iwasawa's arms, and began bawling. Iwasawa was unsure on what to do in this situation, as it was the first time she experienced something like this. "W-what's wrong, Irie?"

Iwasawa studied her, to find at least a hint about her current problem. She was a slightly surprised.

Irie wore a something like a nightdress. Her slender figure showed from her the shape of the dress. Her lavender hair, flowed elegantly down her back. You can still see her black leg band, as it stood out from her white clothes. A silver necklace was around her neck, along with sliver bracelets on her wrists and on her feet was white, low heeled espadrilles, finishing her stunning look.

Iwasawa placed her hands on her shoulder, pulling her gingerly away from her so she wouldn't startle her. Irie slowly gazed up at her, eyes wide, about to overflow with tears again (and capturing a few hearts in the process).

Hisako walked over to the poor girl. "Did something happened? Can you tell us? Do you need me to beat someone up for you?" she coaxed. Rena sweat dropped at her last question.

"W-well-"

"SO this is where you were, Irie!" Sekine rushed in the door, interrupting her.

Unlike Irie's elegant look, Sekine had a more of a vampiric look.

She had black streaks in her usually blonde hair. Black high-heeled boots, and bands on her right wrist. What looked like fake blood ran down her neck, which from far away, seemed real. Make-up was all over her face, giving her a pale look.. A pitch black cape was tied around her neck and hanged from her back to go along with her almost all black outfit. Fake sharp, pointy teeth completed her image.

Sekine walked over to Irie. "Come on, we're still not ready yet." she grabbed Irie's hand and started to drag her out. Irie latched onto Iwasawa's arm in an attempt to not to leave.

"No! I don't wanna!" she whined and went back to Iwasawa's arms.

"What are you trying to do Sekine?" Hisako asked as she lightly hit her forehead.

Sekine pulled back and straightened herself up before speaking. "Irie ran out of the class before we finished explaining to her about what she was supposed to do."

"That's because you asked the impossible!" Irie retorted.

"Well then, can you explain to us about what you wanted Irie to do, Sekine?" Hisako asked.

"Our class is doing a haunted house for the festival. As you can see, I'm a vampire and the rest of the dressed up in other costumes. Irie is the maiden you get to meet at the end. She shows the way out of the house, but actually leading them to another surprise before they really get to leave" Sekine answered. "But Irie doesn't want to do it."

"That's because... i-it's..." Irie trailed off.

"It's what?" Iwasawa urged her to go on.

"I-it's too embarrassing." she whispered. Irie looked at Sekine. "You said I'll help hand out the tickets at the entrance of the class."

"Ah, about that, some people of the class decided it would be better for you to do this instead. We already have enough people working the tickets." Sekine replied buntly.

"B-but..." she looked down, avoiding everyone's gazes.

"Irie." Iwasawa lifted her chin so she can look at Irie face to face.

"Why don't you try it out?" Iwasawa suggested.

"Eh? You too?" Irie pouted.

"Well, you should try it out first and if you don't like it, then we'll help you get out this, 'kay?" Hisako said.

"And..." Iwasawa placed a hand on top of Irie's head.

"You looks quite cute in that outfit." she smiled.

Irie blushed slightly. "R-really?..." she went back at staring at the ground.

"Yeah, you look good in that. Maybe you should wear something that that every now and then." Hisako teased.

"What are you asking about, Hisako-san?" Sekine said playfully. "Anyway, let's go, Irie."

"We'll come get you later." Iwasawa commented.

"O-okay." Irie said, though she was a bit uncomfortable with the idea of being a maiden for a haunted house. Sekine was about to open the door when Yui came bursting in.

"Wait!" Yui hollered.

"Y-yui?" Sekine said, a bit surprised by her sudden appearance.

_A lot of people running into our class today and it's not even opening time. _Iwasawa thought.

Yui walked over to Hisako and Iwasawa and handed them some tickets. "Here."

Hisako studied it carefully, flipping it over few times to catch the full context of the ticket.

"Yui, What's this for?" Iwasawa asked as Yui handed Sekine and Irie their own tickets.

"That is your free taiyaki ticket, courtesy of Yui." Yui bowed.

"That's right. Your class is doing a taiyaki stand." Irie commented.

"Yup!" Yui grinned widely at her sempai.

"By the way..." she pointed at Irie. "What are you wearing?"

Irie blushed once more. "I-it's a costume." she stammered.

"I see..."

"And, Yui, your wearing..." Iwasawa trailed away from her sentence.

"Ah, this? It brings back memories, doesn't it?"

Yui was wearing the uniform that she and and many others wore back when they were "dead". The blue pleated skirt, the original sailor uniform design, and of course the 'SSS' symbol. The symbol of why the Front was formed. To fight against the cruel lives they had to live back before when they were in that horrid state.

"No reason. I just wanted too. Most people in my class are wearing costumes too."

"How nostalgic." Iwasawa mumbled.

"Isn't it? I got some of my friends from the Home EC class to make it. I got them to make your uniforms too for your performance."

"Really? Thanks Yui!" Sekine exclaimed.

"And...another reason why I'm here..." Yui pulled out her digital camera out of nowhere and began taking a barrage of pictures of Irie and the rest of the band in their outfits.

"Hey! Yui, what are you doing?" Hisako demanded as she put her hand over the shutter so she would stop.

_Actually I would like to know where she got the camera from. _Sekine thought randomly. Totally out of subject.

"I'm taking pictures." Yui stated the obvious.

"We know your doing that. But why so suddenly?" Iwasawa asked her pinked haired kouhai.

"Because everyone looks so cool! Memories!" she exclaimed.

_She's sparkling! _Iwasawa thought as she tried to block out the light emanating from Yui's body with her hand. Her eyes started to hurt looking at her.

"Oh! Before I forget, the rehearsal is at 12 in the afternoon right?" Yui asked.

"Yeah. Make sure you get there on time." Iwasawa replied.

Ai raised her hand. "Um, what rehearsal?"

"Our last band rehearsal before get to play on stage today. You know, that little contest thing that Kougami-san made up." Sekine answered with a brief explanation.

Irie brightened up. "I'm looking forward to our concert! It's been a while since we performed together."

"Yeah, and since we have Iwasawa back as the vocalist, everything will go smoothly." Hisako added.

"Hey! What about me?" Yui roared.

Hisako raised an eyebrow at her. "What about you?"

"I was also a vocalist too!"

"A horrible one."

"I was a great vocalist!"

"Not really. You were often off-rhythm and you could barely play your guitar and sing at the same time."

"But our performances were a hit!"

"That's true, but you could have done better."

Yui ran to Iwasawa with tears overflowing from her eyes. "Sempai! Hisako-san is being mean!" she sobbed.

"No I'm not. I am telling the truth. You would rather I tell a lie and say you were _awesome_? Hisako stated.

"Yes!"

"Yui, if we told you were doing good, then you have be making the same mistakes over and over again." Irie said.

"You should learn from your mistakes so can get better at singing and playing at the same time." Sekine added.

"How about this, Yui? I'll help you practice your singing so you can get better." Iwasawa suggested to the pink haired girl.

Yui instantly brightened up. "Really?"

Iwasawa smiled at her to show her sincerity. "Yeah."

"All right!" Yui jumped in the air in joy.

Rena walked over to the overjoyed girl and tapped her shoulder. "You should get going now. It's time for us to open up." she pointed the clock.

"You're right! I have to go!" Yui ran quickly out the door.

"Guess we should go too." Irie said. Sekine and Irie began making their way back to their class.

Hisako fist pumped the air. "Right. Time to get to work!"

Costumers kept flowing into the small, cramped cafe of class 2-2.

Rena hurried over to a table, awaiting their order of coffee. Ai was busy preparing the upcoming orders along with many others in the back of the room. Hisako and Iwasawa had their hands full taking the orders and entertaining those who were still on the waiting list.

"Sorry, but your order isn't ready yet. Please wait just a little longer." Iwasawa reassured the woman monotonously. She really didn't feel like doing this anymore. She took a quick glance at the clock.

_Almost 11... Would we be able to get out of the class in time to practice?_

**About an hour later...**

Hisako pulled back a chair and sat down. The amount of people had decreased thankfully. Now was the time to take a deep breath of relief. She layed her head down on the cold surface.

No, it's not like she wanted the costumers to stop coming, but the last wave of them were awful. A young toddler just _had_ to spill hot coffee on the floor, there just _had _to have a shortage of food supplies, and concoinidently, the coffee maker stopped working, so she had to run out to get a new one.

She couldn't wait to play her heart out at their up coming performance.

Iwasawa took the cup of tea from the silver tray in her hand and placed it on the table carefully. "Here you go. Enjoy it while it's still hot." she smiled at the girl that was seated.

"Thank you." she responded as she took a sip.

Iwasawa looked at the clock for the seventh time that hour and poked Hisako's shoulder. "Hey. Let's go pick up Irie and Sekine now."

Hisako shifted in her seat lazily and lifted her head up. "Oh, Iwasawa. You're done?"

"Yeah. It's almost time for practice. We have to get everyone."

Hisako staggered to her feet. She stretched her arms out as she did. "Okay, I'm ready let's go."

On their way out the door, Iwasawa called back to Rena. "We're leaving."

Rena looked up from the cup she was pouring tea into. "All, right. We'll take of it from here."

"Thanks."

The two arrived at Sekine and Irie's class of "Haunted House of Horror" (that's what the sign in front said along with the logo, _Don't worry, there's nothing dead in here... maybe.)_

"W-what's up if the name? And the logo...?" Hisako pointed out the lame sign. Iwasawa lowered her head in shame. They both knew who would make something like this. And out of pure amusement.

"Stupid Sekine." Hisako muttered under her breath.

_Is the logo supposed to be a pun? _Iwasawa thought. They were considered dead for a while.

A scream echoed from inside the class and a couple ran out with terror written all over their faces. Sekine poked her head out from the door. "Hope you had a good time!" She called out after the two.

"Ah, Sekine."

"Iwasawa! It's time to go already?"

"Yeah."

"Hold on. Let me go fetch Irie." Sekine ran back into the dark room. "IRIE!"

_She didn't need to yell... _Hisako thought as she covered her ears.

Moments later, Sekine and Irie appeared from the classroom. "Shall we get going then?" Sekine marched out in front of them. Irie stayed next to Iwasawa.

"Thanks for coming to get us."

"We're going to the same place so it doesn't matter. Anyway, how was it? Your job as being a 'maiden', that is."

"Ah, it went quite well, actually."

"Really? That's good."

"What are you guys doing? Let's go!" Sekine called.

"We're coming! We're coming!" Hisako replied in loud enough voice for her to hear from down the hall.

**In a empty classroom...**

"You're here! I just got finished getting everything ready. Everything's in tip-top shape for today!" Yui exclaimed as she open the door wider for her senpais and shutting it close when they got inside.

"Everything looks exactly the same as before." Irie commented.

She took her seat behind her drums that had their signature Girls Dead Monster image on one of her drums. Sekine and Hisako picked up their instruments and got into their usual positions, awaiting the order to start. Iwasawa took her electric guitar into hand. "Ready?" she asked the rest.

"Yeah. On your count, Irie." Hisako said. "Oh, Sekine. No improvising."

"I know. I know, Hisako."

Irie clacked her drumsticks together and started the count on Iwasawa's signal. "One, two!"

As the intro played in perfect rhythm, Yui checked over the amps and equipment, humming along with the music as she worked.

**… Afterward...**

Hisako exhaled sharply. "That was good, for our first practice in ages."

"It was awesome, playing in the band again!"

"I'm getting excited!"

Iwasawa took a drink from her water bottle, her throat dry from singing. Yui walked over to the red head. "It's almost time."

"Yeah. Yui, you ready?"

"Of course! I got everything all ready for today!"

"You really looking forward to this."

"Yup. It is GDM's first concert, in this world anyway."

Iwasawa tossed her empty plastic bottle into the trash. "Let's go to the gym then. Gotta do one last stage check."

"But first, here" Yui gave her a nicely folded set of clothes. "Your uniform."

"Thanks. I'll put it on after we're done setting up in the gym."

"By the way, who's going first? Us or Kougami?" Iwasawa asked.

Yui looked at the schedule. "Um, let's see... After the rest of the performance from the other classes, looks like it's Kougami."

"All right! We're final act!" Sekine remarked. "Isn't that great, Miyukichi? ...Miyukichi? Hey, Miyukichi?"

"Huh?" Irie responses blankly. "Sorry, I forgot that's my nickname. It's been a while since you called me that, Shiorin."

"I just remember it just now too. I wanted to try saying it again. Last time I called you 'Miyukichi' was back before our last concert."

"Everyday was like a festival. It was so fun! It kinda makes me miss it there."

"Hey, we're leaving without you!" Hisako's voice cuts in.

* * *

"Ah, wait! Hisako! Iwasawa!"

**2 o'clock...**

Yui had a huge lump in her throat. She was nervous and it wasn't even her that is going to play today. She took a peek from behind the curtain. _There's so many people!_

The entire gym filled filled, packed. Even the entrance had people trying to get in. Performances from the other classes were finished and now it was almost Girls Dead Monster's turn. Right after Sei Kougami's performance anyway.

"Hey, Yui get over here. Kougami about to start." Hisako hissed.

"Ah. Sorry."

Yui ran back to small room next to the gym just as the curtains was being pulled up. Kougami strutted her way to the center of the stage, microphone in hand.

"Everyone! How are you doing? I'm Sei Kougami! I'm going to sing a song for you, so feel honored!" she announces.

"Wow... so much ego." Irie whispered to Sekine. Sekine laughed softly at her remark. "It's almost funny."

Kougami snapped her fingers and the stage got dark and a spotlight came shining upon her. She cleared her throat and the music begins.

_jyuuryoku hanpirei_

_kazan mitai ni hikaru fin_ _kimi wa shitten no _

_atashi no beating heart_

_mousou no gyarakushi-_

_suberiochitara poizun sea_

_nan'oku kounen daitan na kisu de tobikoero_

_harapeko nano_

_tsugi no sute-ji ni ikimashou_

_motteke ryuusei chirashite deito_

_koko de kiyuu na faito ekusutashi- kogashite yo_

_tondeke kimi no mune ni sweet_

_omakaseshinasai_

_motto yoku shite ageru ageru_

_iteza gogo kuji Don't be late_

"Well, well. Will you look at that. She can sing." Hisako said. "Surprisingly."

_yurusarenai nowa_

_itsuwari no kimi no hoshi_

_bibou to iu na no hakanai kiseki_

_isshun no romantic toketara sugu ni it regrets_

_mujyuuryoku chi ni ashi mo tsukanai omoi demo_

_kono sora ippai_

_kodou narashite ai wo agetai_ _kizutsuitemo..._

_future of my love and life is not gonna say good-bye!_

The music stops and the entire gym fills with the sound of applauds and cheers. The curtains came down as Kougami walks back to the back room with a big, wide smile plastered on her face. "I'm impressed." Iwasawa says from her seat as she enters the room. "You weren't bluffing."

"What? Scared after seeing a marvelous performance? I know, you thinking of backing aren't you? But it's too late-"

"No, I'm not. Actually, we're not. We were looking forward to this for a while." Iwasawa smiles. "Yui, how many minutes before the curtains lift?"

"About three minutes." "Okay." she stands and walks out of the room. "All right, here we go." Hisako and others follow her out.

Hisako taps Kougami's shoulder before leaving. "Hope you enjoy our performance." "

I just hope you don't get 'boo-ed' of the stage." she fumed.

"Sure. Okay." Hisako closes the door slightly as she stepped out.

Yui walks to the front of the stage. "Hey! Did everyone enjoy today so far?" she asks the audience. Their voices erupt in response to Yui's question.

"Well then, here comes the last show for today! I present to you, Girls Dead Monster!"

The gym's light suddenly turn off. Some murmurs of worry come from the crowd.

The sound of cymbals echo throughout the gym as the musics begins. Lights shine down onto the stage, revealing the ones on stage. The crowd burst with excitement with the flashy entrance.

_haigo ni wa shatta ano kabe_

_yubisaki wa tetsu no nioi_

_susume hajike dono michi komu desho_

_fly away koko kara_

_from now mitsukeru_

_rock o kanadero_

_tooku o misuero_

_ikitsugi sae dekinai machi no naka _

"Huh? This song?" Rena whispers quietly. Ai and herself finally got inside the gym and found some seats empty seats. _It's the same song Iwasawa-san sang for us before._

_hoshizora ga saikou no butai_

_karasu tachi kaakaa to naku yo_

_itsu mo omou yo itsu neteru n daro_

_fly away atashi mo_

_song for utau yo_

_rock o hibikase_

_crow to utau yo_

Outside the gym, you can hear the powerful music through the thick walls. People walking by that heard this came rushing to the already-packed gym.

_itsumade konna tokoro ni iru?_

_sou iu yatsu mo ita ki ga suru_

_urusai koto dake iu no nara_

_shikkoku no ha ni sarawarete kiete kure_

When Hisako started guitar solo, the crowd went even more wild. Iwasawa gave a quick grin before returning to her singing.

_zenryoku de mou taoresou da_

_yubi mo surikirete itai _

_demo ne yaru yo konya mo biggu na sutoorii_

_fly away koko kara_

_from now mitsukeru_

_rock o kanadero_

_love o utau yo_

The gym was totally filled at that point. More and more people were trying to get even a small glimpse at the stage. It seemed like everyone in the whole school was concentrated in the gym.

_itsumade datte koko ni iru yo_

_toorisugite iku hito no naka_

_yami ni tozasareta suteeji de_

_ima kibou no uta utau yo_

_anata datte tsukareteru desho_

"Okay." Yui noticed the climax of the song. She went ahead pulled the lever next to her. The fans in the back of the gyms began to spin. She pushed a button and down came the confetti that was quickly carried away by the winds and down to the crowd. Combined with lighting, the confetti sparkled and glowed, giving a wonderful effect to the performance.

_sono senaka ni mo todoketai yo_

_konna kurayami no naka kara no_

_kibou terasu hikari no uta o_

_sono uta o_

The song ends as the lights dim and the curtains fall. Kougami couldn't help her jaw to drop. These 'Girls Dead Monster' gave spectacular performance.

Behind the curtains, Iwasawa could hear everyone's excitement from their concert. Their screaming voices tore through the dark. _Yup, she, no, we did our job well._

Yui came rushing toward them from the little control room she was in. "Operation tornado was a success!" she gave reference to what Yuri always used to call their concerts.

Sekine stretched her arms out. "That was so fun!"

"Brings back memories of our first concert together." Irie said.

"When's the next fest? I can't wait!" Hisako exclaimed.

"Everyone, good job today." Iwasawa complimented.

"The whole place is still going wild." Yui noted the still-screaming crowd outside the curtains.

"That means we did a good job then. And, thanks Yui, for your work with the effects."

"Yup, I did do a awesome job. Guess all that time helping Yusa wasn't a waste after all."

"Ahem." Someone cleared their voice behind the band. The group turned around to see who it was.

"Congratulations. You win." Kougami said, dully.

"Hey, hey. You have to be so down about it." Hisako smirked.

_In. Your. Face._

"But!" Kougami pointed at Iwasawa. "I'll let it slide for now."

"Let what slide?" Iwasawa asked.

"That you cheated."

"Huh? How did Iwasawa cheat?" Hisako growled.

"This was contest between me and her. With you four helping her, it's not fair. But since I'm a forgiving person I'll let it slide."

"Ah, but there was only one rule, if I recall correctly." Iwasawa said. "'Bring it all you got and show no mercy!' was it?"

Kougami's brain stopped it train of thought. She did recall saying something like that."W-well... That's..."

"There you have it. Iwasawa won." Sekine grinned. _What an idiot. She can't even remember her own rules for her own game. _

"Iwasawa beat you." Irie urged on, just to make the point, that, of course, Iwasawa won.

"Now then, let's pack up. We still have some time before the festival ends." Iwasawa said. She haven't seen what the other classes did.

"We still didn't get to use our free taiyaki ticket yet." Hisako remembered. "Let's go there first."

"Fine by me."

The group started packing their instruments away, chatting about the day, leaving a silent Kougami in the corner.


	9. Meeting at a Baseball Game

_Ring Ring_

_Ring Ring_

_Ring Ri-_

"Hello?"

"So you finally decided to pick up, did you?"

"If I didn't pick up, you'll just keep calling wouldn't you?"

"Haha, you know me so well."

"So, what did you want?"

"You're free today, right?"

"Yeah. I am."

"Then let's go to the park!"

"The park?"

"Yup! There's a baseball game today! Let's go! I'll get the others to come."

"Baseball, huh?..."

"Even if you say no, I'll come over to your place and drag over there."

A sigh came from the other line. "I got it. I'll go. But why are you so excited, Hisako?"

"Yui kept pestering me about it yesterday when she found out about it from her mother, so I promised her I'll take her. Anyway, Iwasawa, get to the train station by the next 15 minutes."

"Wait, Hisa-"

"See ya later!" The line went dead.

Iwasawa sighed again. "How am I supposed to get to the train station in 15 minutes? Stupid Hisako."

* * *

"You're late!" Hisako cupped her hands over the mouth to get the sound to echo to reach the other side.

"Well, sorry for not being to make it to the station 15 minutes after you hang up." Iwasawa retorted as she jogged over to Hisako. "You were already here when you called, weren't you?"

"Who knows..."

"Don't look away."

Hisako chuckled softly and grabbed her friend's wrist. "Come on. Let's hurry up. The train gonna leave us!"

She forcefully pulled Iwasawa into the train after her. The electronically controlled doors closed slowly upon them entering and shut itself closed. Momentarily, the train started up and began moving. It ran inside the tunnel with only its lights illuminating the darkness.

Hisako took a seat near to her as Iwasawa stood next to her and held on the triangular handle hanging down from the ceiling.

"Wasn't the others coming?" Iwasawa asked as she adjusted her grip.

Hisako stared out the window, placing her elbow on the edge. "Irie and Sekine went to pick up Yui. They'll meet us there."

Iwasawa followed her gaze to the outside. Watching the shadows of the people waiting to get off the train was entertaining. The dark figures danced for a instant before blurring out of sight from the speed the locomotive was going at. Hisako seemed to think the same, as her attention was completely taken by the shadows' ability to swirl and then immediately obscure into the darkness, creating a light gray shade on the wall. Her eyes tried to follow them before they disappeared, but alas, she couldn't.

Iwasawa looked around the train. It was about half full with people of all ages, conversing, sitting quietly, or doing something to keep themselves busy. Since the time where everyone would be pushing and shoving to get inside to get to their daily commutes was over hours ago, it was the perfect time to go out somewhere. In this case, the park in the next town to watch a baseball game. Why Yui was so excited, she didn't know. She didn't appear to have much of an interest of baseball back in the SSS. Then again, they are "alive" now, so having new hobbies and preferences was a possibility.

"Hey, Iwasawa."

"What?"

"I'm starving."

_So that's why she's been so quiet!_ Iwasawa thought. _How long has she been in the station?_

"And?"

"Did you bring any food?"

"Of course not. I had to rush out here right after you called."

Hisako pouted. "I thought you were my friend."

"I am."

"Real friends would give their friends food when they're hungry."

"Sorry for not being perfect."

"Iwasawa... You're can be really mean, you know that?"

* * *

Hisako stretched her limbs out as she walked back onto the concrete floor. She pulled up her sleeve to look at her silver watch on her wrist. "12:53... The game starts in about 30 minutes. Yui and the rest should be there by now." She turned around, but the red head wasn't behind her. "Iwasawa?"

"Hisako, come here!" Iwasawa called to her from a small crowd gathering in spot in the side on the platform.

Hisako followed Iwasawa as they slipped through the mass of people. Hisako' eyes widened in surprised, and Iwasawa tried to stifle back her laugh.

There in the middle of the crowd was a large rectangular piece of cardboard and standing on the piece was TK break-dancing.

"Oh, check this out!" TK said as he began to do some funky moves.

He scuffed his red sneakers before entering a head spin.

"TK!" Hisako waved and walked over to the blond.

"Yo!" He called back, jumped up and moon-walked over to the two. His sneakers skidded along the floor as he did. The crowd around them dispersed as his little performance was over for the time being.

"Hey TK." Iwasawa greeted as she roughly shook his hand.

TK saluted her and Hisako high-fived him.

"Wow, TK. You sure love to dance don't you?" Hisako laughed. It was so predictable that TK would dance here, out in random places.

TK nodded his head in response. He pointed at Hisako and Iwasawa sharply. "Come on, let's dance!"

Iwasawa laughed nervously. "No thanks, we're on our way to the park to watch a game. Want to come? I'm sure Sekine and Irie would love to see you."

Sekine and TK were good friends back in the afterlife. Whenever Sekine had the time, she would hang out with TK, and occasionally bring Irie with her. Thanks to TK, Sekine learned a lot of dance moves that she would sometimes put into their live performances.

TK shook his head lightly. "No thanks." His Japanese was still a little rough.

Hisako smiled crookedly. "Sure? Well, it's not like we're forcing to come. See ya around, TK."

Iwasawa and Hisako left the bandana head with his dancing.

"Get chance and luck!"

* * *

"You're here!" a certain pink haired yelled.

"Yup. See, I got Iwasawa right here." Hisako grabbed her by the arm to prove her point.

"You don't have to say it like I'm an object, Hisako."

"Come on, we have your seats already." Yui pulled the two toward the bleachers.

"Hey, Yui. You don't happen to have any food with you?" Hisako asked the fanged girl in front of her.

"Sekine and Irie went to go get some snacks to eat for the game." she replied.

"All right! At least I can rely on those two."

"Okay, I got it, Hisako." Iwasawa rolled her eyes.

"W-we're back!" Sekine came to the bleachers with two paper bags and a few cans of canned coffee in her hands. Judging from her voice, she was really tired. "You wouldn't believe the line to get the taiyaki. It was horrible."

Irie sat next to Yui and set the plastic bags down. "The line at the store wasn't so bad. Here." she tossed a box of chocolate flavored biscuits to Hisako and opened a can of her favorite soft drink.

Hisako caught the toss and ripped open the top of the packaging. Iwasawa twisted the cap of a bottle water to open it. "Oh yeah, guess who we met with at the train station." Iwasawa said in between sips.

"Who?" Yui wasn't up for a guessing game.

Iwasawa smiled. "TK."

"What? You met TK? Here?" Sekine nearly spit out her coffee.

"So TK-sempai is here too."

"I want to see TK!" Irie whined.

"He's too busy with his break dancing to come." Hisako crookedly grinned.

"Next time I see him, I'll get him to come to our next live concert." Sekine said excitedly. "Maybe he know anyone else that's here, like Yuri or Oyama."

Cheering from the people around broke their conversation. The game was about to start.

"Is our school is participating?" Iwasawa questioned.

Irie shook her head. "Nope, thank goodness. If they did, then the other team would have lost by forfeit."

Sekine stared down at the field.

"Kougaku high school versus Setodai High school. Setodai seems to be the favorite to win. Kougaku's baseball team was just created a few years back, but I heard they got some really good players this year."

"You know a lot about this, Sekine." Iwasawa commented.

"I looked it up before coming here."

They both turn back to the field, where the two teams began taking their positions. Setodai was outfield while Kougaku was up to bat. The first batter went up, took his place in a ready position, and tapped the home base to show the pitcher he was ready for the pitch.

The pitcher nodded once, glanced at the ball in his hand and threw the ball.

And right when the batter was about to swing...

"You loser!"

A high-pitched voice echoed in the air. In response was the batter's small cry of pain as he was thrown up into the air and landed face first onto the dirt.

Hisako and Sekine facepalm both themselves. Irie sweat dropped at the scene. Iwasawa mentally slapped herself for not being careful enough.

"Crap, I forgot we had an idiot with us today." Hisako mumbled.

"Did she want to come just to that? She must really hate baseball players." Iwasawa lowered her head in shame.

"No wonder she wanted to come so badly." Irie said.

"Wow. All hail the mighty pink haired princess and her super-powerful roundhouse kick." Sekine whistled.

Yes, Yui came from behind the batter and kicked the poor guy up high into the dust filled air for seemingly no apparent reason.

"Wait." Hisako looked closer at the field and stood up. "Isn't that..."

The batter's cap flew off when he was attacked by Yui and revealed his face that was previously unseen by the shadows of the hat.

"Hinata!" Irie said in surprise.

Down on the ground lay Hinata Hedeki with a smirking Yui towering over his still body.

A light bulb appeared over Sekine's head. "Ah, now I see why Yui did that."

"She and Hinata did have a bit a rocky relationship. Whenever they were together, they would get into a fight." Iwasawa recalled.

Back on the field, Hinata regained his consciousness.

"Wha-" Hinata struggled to his feet.

"What the hell was that for?" he violently grabbed the girl by the arm and put her into a headlock.

Yui reflexively countered with a German suplex, the same one that Otonashi had taught her after many hours of hard, back-breaking practice.

"Hey, how you like that, you baseball freak?" Yui roared.

She let go of her firm grip on his waist and stomped her foot down next to her victim's head.

Hinata shook off the hit after a few moments of regaining himself.

"Why you-" He stopped once he had a good look at his attacker's face.

"Yui?"

Her enraged expression softened when he finally noticed.

"It's been a while, Hinata-sempai."

"Yui! But why? How?" he asked her, but stopped when he remembered the current time and place of their meeting. He quickly turned, and saw his teammates, opponents, and the crowd of puzzled and surprised faces on almost all the of the people here.

The ones who weren't, he easily picked out of the crowd.

"Iwasawa? And even Hisako, Sekine and Irie? No, wait." Hinata looked back at his coach. Not the right place to talk.

"Hey, I'm not feeling too good. Can I go home?"

The adult nervously, hesitantly, gave him the permission to leave. "Y-yeah. Go ahead."

Hinata brightened. The blue headed young man grasped Yui's hand and began running out of the park, with her in tow.

Irie watched as they ran together until they were out of her field of vision. "Should we go after them?"

Hisako seated herself. "Nah. Let they do what they want."

"We came here to watch a baseball game, let Yui do whatever she want today." Iwasawa calmly replied.

"Hope they're aren't doing anything naughty. They are of that age now." Sekine smirked evilly.

Irie flicked the blond's forehead. "Stupid. They wouldn't do anything like that."

Sekine held her forehead. "I was just kidding."

The four looked back at the field that was starting the game over again after the tiny interruption.

* * *

Hinata let go of Yui's hand as soon as they turned a corner. Yui panted and placed her hands on her knees for support.

"S-sempai? What are you doing?"

"Wait. Before anyone asks anymore questions, let go find somewhere to sit." Hinata pointed to a nearby cafe.

They two sit on the small circle table and Hinata raised his hand for someone to take their order.

He ordered a cup of coffee and Yui ordered a slice of cake.

Hinata cleared his throat. "Yui, what are doing here? I thought you were paralyzed."

Yui laughed nervously. "Well, it seems that when I was with the SSS and you, my body finally broke down after lack of usage and I fell into a coma."

"A coma..."

"Yup." A shade of light pink crawled up to her cheeks. "And, after that promise you told me, I was able to wake up."

Hinata scratched the side of his head. "O-oh. T-that?" He looked to the side to try hide his faint blush.

"When I woke, my mother was by my side, crying, when I opened my eyes."

A waiter arrived with their orders. He carefully set them down, to try not to interrupt the conversation. Hinata quietly thanked him as he put it on the table. Yui stared at him until he left.

She fidgeted slightly as she tried to find the words to continue her story. "Let's see..."

"You talking about your mother and when you woke up." he started for her.

"Ah, right. While I was unconscious, I was put on life support, since my body was losing its grip on life. My heartbeat was slowing and my heart was going to stop if no one did anything about it. In a effort in wake me, my mother thought of using a defibrillator to restart my heart."

"It got that bad that hey needed to shock you back to life?"

"Yeah. My muscles were weak and could no longer support my organs' natural functions. That was one of the reasons why my body broke down."

Hinata gritted his teeth. "I... see..."

Yui sliced her cake her fork and ate the part she sliced off of it. She smiled. "What are you getting so worked for?"

"Because I couldn't do anything for you during that time."

"Idiot. Did you forget? We met in the afterlife. There's no way you could have known I was like that."

"I know, but..."

Yui laughed and she continued her story. "It seems there was a side effect after the doctors used the defibrillator."

"Eh?"

"The shocks applied electrical energy to my brain, and then my nerves. Since you know, nerves carry the electrochemical to make your body move. My brain started to work again and my nerves regained their a little of their lost power. I was able to move again, but just a little. I had to go through physical rehabilitation to get used to walking and stuff."

"Can that even happen?" Hinata asked in disbelief.

"Don't know. But that's the doctors' explanation of how I survived. Everyone calls a miracle."

"A miracle. There looks a there's a lot of them now." He placed a hand on top of her petite one. "Like this one here. The miracle that I was able to meet to again in such a small amount of time."

Yui blushed a rosy red. "I-idiot. Saying something like that." Her bangs covered her face. "Saying cheesy stuff like that won't do you any good." she stubbornly retorted.

"Sure. Then why is your face all red?" he pointed at her face.

"I'm embarrassed to be near you in public after what you said."

"Okay. Then expect more comments like that in the future. It's fun for me to watch you get all red and nervous."

"Huh? Who's that one that all nervous?" she abruptly stood up. People near got startled and looked at Yui like she was crazy. Yui blushed a deeper red when she noticed their stares, and sat back on her chair.

Hinata held his stomach as he laughed. "W-w-what are you doing? You idiot!" Tears began to form in his eyes from laughing too hard.

"Hey! Stop laughing!"

He wiped his tears away. "Sorry. Sorry. But that was uncalled for."

Yui puffed her cheeks. "It's your fault."

"Whatever."

Yui was about to say something to response but stopped herself.

"And? What about you? Why are you here, back in the real world?"

Hinata paused, to collect his thoughts. "Let's see... well, since everyone else passed on in the afterlife, I had no reason to stay, so I disappeared after them. You already left, but the these weird shadow things attacked us and tried to turn us into NPCs, so Otonashi suggested that we should disappear so we wouldn't be stuck here as a NPC." A smile danced on his lips when he remembered. "And Yuri, fixed the problem and made the shadows disappear. After that, Otonashi made a graduation thing for the rest of SSS members who didn't didn't disappear yet."

"That's not what I'm asking." she grumbled.

"Okay, okay. I'll tell you, geez. You know how I lost a game because I missed a fly-ball?"

"Yeah. And then, some guy gave you drugs and then you got hit by a truck."

"After I got hit, I went into a coma, like you and came to live in the dorms with Oyama while we were in the SSS." he drank the rest of his drink. "I woke up after passing on and graduating, I had to stay in the hospital for a while since some of my bones broke from the impact. When I recovered, I wanted to play again."

"Then you entered Kougaku and joined their baseball team."

"Yup. One of the reason why I joined was so I can play baseball in the cities and towns nearby to find you. I was going to hit every single window in order to find you, but looks like I don't have to anymore. You just saved me lots of time and money."

"S-stop saying those types of stuff. It's disgusting." Yui stuttered.

"Haha, but thanks to joining Kougaku, I was able to find you quicker than expected. All the luck I saved up was a lot more than I thought." Hinata pounded his chest proudly.

_**Ding Dong! Ding Dong!**_

The twosome looked at the clock-tower behind them. The clock's hands had struck 3.

"It's this time already?" Hinata sat up from his chair. Yui followed his action.

Hinata clapped his hands together and apologized. "Sorry, I have to go. The train leaves that goes to my city leaves soon."

Yui gazed at the ground sadly. "Okay..."

"If you want, we can exchange phone numbers, so we can keep in touch."

She glowed with happiness instantly. "Really?"

"Yup." He scribbled on a piece of napkin with a bold point pen he kept in his pocket and gave it to her. "Here. Just me a call and I'll memorize the number that you're calling from."

Yui played with her fingers nervously. "Then, I can call tonight, right?"

He gave a thumbs up. "Sure! I'll be home around eight in the evening. I have to go run some errands first."

The fanged girl smiled widely, showing her joy. "Okay!"

"See ya!" And off the youth went. A hand raised to wave goodbye behind him as he jogged away from the young girl who was clutching the number in her hands closely to her heart.

_See you later, Hinata-sempai._

_

* * *

_

_** 30 minutes before...**_

Hisako yawned. "Aah, what was that?"

Irie raised an eyebrow at the brunette. "What? The game was good."

"But did you see some of them though? I bet they were beginners 'cause they watched the ball go right past them! If I was out there in the field, the game would've been over by a cold game." she huffed.

"It's all good, even if the game ended way to fast!" Sekine wrapped an arm around Hisako's shoulders. "We went out and had fun. For the exception of Yui, who left."

"And speak of the devil." Iwasawa pointed at Yui and Hinata who were conversing across the street from where they were standing.

"Oh crap, hide!" Hisako ducked under some nearby bushes with Sekine. Irie and Iwasawa was pulled down afterward, despite them trying to walk away.

"Why are we hiding?" Irie rubbed her head after hitting it against the wall.

"Shh!" Sekine put a finger over her lips as she hissed at Irie. Hisako and Sekine looked at each other and nodded. They stood up slowly and quietly as they can, crept to the other side of the street, blending in with the crowd of people. Iwasawa sighed and Irie and her followed the two's previous actions, but not as intensely.

They caught up to Sekine and Hisako, who sat at a table two tables away from Hinata and Yui's, concealing themselves with some menus. They pulled the chairs silently and took a seat as well.

"What are you doing?" Iwasawa demanded. "Didn't we say Yui can do whatever she wanted today?"

"Yeah," Hisako agreed to that. "But, this a perfect chance to see what they're so passionately discussing about."

"I don't think they're talking passionately though..."

"Be quiet! Yui about to say something!" Sekine shushed.

_They're too into it! _Iwasawa sweat dropped at her friends' over-curiosity.

Is there really a reason to pry through someone else's private life? But, she would be lying if she said if wasn't in the least interested in what their two companions were taking their time to talk about away from everyone. I mean, Yui is her precious friend and kouhai, so she couldn't, wouldn't ever let her go down the wrong path. Not saying that Hinata is a bad guy, but you never be a little too careful.

So, in order to prevent anything wrong to happen to Yui, she would stay here and listen into their conversation. 'Cause that's what good people do. Good people would not let their friend to something stupid or bad or-

Crap.

Iwasawa was trying to convince herself eavesdropping was an acceptable thing. She was getting too into this too. Sekine and Hisako must be rubbing off on her.

"Huh? Who's that one that all nervous?"

Iwasawa could hear Hisako groan. Sekine muttered something inaudible under her breath. Irie let out a sigh.

Yui hastily rocketed up from her seat. A blush came up to her face as she slowly sat back down. Hinata was laughing hard at Yui's reaction.

"Hey! Stop laughing!"

Hinata brushed the warm tears away. "Sorry. Sorry. But that was uncalled for."

"It's your fault."

"Whatever."

Sekine leaned forward in her chair to get a better listen.

"And? What about you? Why are you here, back in the real world?" Yui asked.

Iwasawa didn't take her eyes off Yui and Hinata, but she could see Hisako from her corner of her eye shooing a waiter away so he wouldn't bother them.

"Let's see... well, since everyone else passed on in the afterlife, I had no reason to stay, so I disappeared after them."

Iwasawa blinked.

_Everyone passed on? So everyone went the way I did?_

"You already left, but the these weird shadow things attacked us and tried to turn us into NPCs, so Otonashi suggested that we should disappear so we wouldn't be stuck here as a NPC. And Yuri, fixed the problem and made the shadows disappear. After that, Otonashi made a graduation thing for the rest of SSS members who didn't didn't disappear yet."

_Shadows? Sounds completely different from what Hisako said..._

She would have to confront them about this.

_Are they hiding something?_

"That's not what I'm asking!" Yui demanded.

"Okay, okay. I'll tell you, geez. You know how I lost a game because I missed a fly-ball?"

"Yeah. And then, some guy gave you drugs and then you got hit by a truck."

"After I got hit, I went into a coma, like you and came to live in the dorms with Oyama while we were in the SSS. I woke up after passing on and graduating, I had to stay in the hospital for a while since some of my bones broke from the impact. When I recovered, I wanted to play again."

"Then you entered Kougaku and joined their baseball team." As expected.

"Yup. One of the reason why I joined was so I can play baseball in the cities and towns nearby to find you. I was going to hit every single window in order to find you, but looks like I don't have to anymore. You just saved me lots of time and money."

Irie "awwwed."

"S-stop saying those types of stuff. It's disgusting." You can hear Yui stutter.

"Haha, but thanks to joining Kougaku, I was able to find you quicker than expected. All the luck I saved up was a lot more than I thought."

Sekine, Hisako and Irie were on the edge of their seats.

_** Ding Dong! Ding Dong!**_

They fell off their chairs. The bell surprised them.

"It's this time already?" Hinata stood up.

"Sorry, I have to go. The train leaves that goes to my city leaves soon."

"Okay..." Iwasawa noticed the touch of sadness was mixed in Yui's voice.

"If you want, we can exchange phone numbers, so we can keep in touch."

"Really?" Yui asked joyfully.

"Yup." He quickly wrote something on a napkin and handed it to Yui. "Here. Just me a call and I'll memorize the number that you're calling from."

"Then, I can call tonight, right?"

"Sure! I'll be home around eight in the evening. I have to go run some errands first."

She smiled widely. "Okay!"

"See ya!" Hinata ran off to the direction of the train station.

Yui stares dreamily as she watches Hinata run.

"Yui~!"

She whips her head around and impulsively stuffs the note into her pocket. "H-hisako-sempai?" Ah, crap.

Sekine and Irie looks at Yui suspiciously. "What did you just put into your pocket?" Sekine asks. "Was it something important?" Irie adds.

"N-no..."

"Then you won't mind if we take a look at it, would ya?" Sekine reached for her pocket, that had the napkin sticking out.

Iwasawa grabs Sekine's wrist before she could take the note and shook her head. Sekine retracted her hand. "Tch, that's not fun, Iwasawa."

"How long were you here?" Yui asked.

Irie replied bluntly. "Long enough."

Yui blushed a bright pink. "How much did you hear?"

Hisako grinned. "Just enough."

"But who would've thought, you and Hinata." Irie said.

A dark red appeared on Yui's face. "W-what? It's nothing l-like that!"

"Your stuttering doesn't help the situation any better." Hisako winked.

"Shut up!" a flustered Yui yelled.

"But, what Hinata said is bothering me." Iwasawa said.

"These shadows and everyone passing on..."

She could see the others freeze up.

"Care to explain?"


	10. Answers

**Hey, sorry for the long update. Here's new chapter.**

**Of course, any constructive criticism is welcome. Anything to make this story more enjoyable for you guys. xD. **

* * *

"Care to explain?" Iwasawa folded her arms and calmly waited for her companions' reply.

Hisako fidgeted in place. _Crap, now what? _

Iwasawa switched her stare from Hisako to Sekine. She flinched as soon as the red head set eyes on her.

Irie played her fingers, looking down at the ground. Beads of sweat ran down her face when she felt Iwasawa's eyes bore into her.

"Y-you see... ah..."

"Go on."

"U-umm..." Her voice was meek and shaky. _Ahh! Oh my gosh! What do I say?_

Thoughts were racing in Irie's mind. _Should I tell her? Or, I shouldn't? I should say it! ...Maybe not? Ah! I'm so confused!_

Irie's expression changed countless of numbers of times while she was making her internal decision.

Iwasawa's eyebrow twitched ever so slightly. _Are they playing with me or something? Is it really that hard to tell something as small as this? _

She frowned.

_Or is it because they feel like I don't deserve to know what happened since I left them. I know I did disappear without a trace without telling them or saying a good bye...but..._

"Excuse me."

_Maybe I shouldn't force them to talk. Poor Irie looks so stressed. Maybe they can tell me later...?_

"Excuse me." Someone cleared their throat to get the girl's attention.

Iwasawa turned behind her and automatically apologized. "Ah, sorry. We were blocking your way."

"Oh? Is that you, Iwasawa-san?"

The girl took a closer look at this person.

"You're... Minamoto-sensei from the hospital!"

"Ahhh!" Sekine jabbed her index finger at the guy. "It's the old geezer! Irie, that's him right?"

"Eh?" A slightly confused Irie uttered before saying her response. "Y-yeah, that's him." She bowed politely. "Hello again."

"What the? You all know this guy?" Hisako asked.

Iwasawa raised an eyebrow at her. "I should be asking that."

_That's strange. Everyone seems to know Minamoto..._

"Hey, I think I know you... I'm sure I seen you before..." Yui contemplated aloud. She rubbed the sides of her temples on her head. "If I remember correctly... you're that old doctor guy... Right?" she glanced back the man for confirmation. He smiled warmly at her.

"You were one of my patients a while back, weren't you? Ah... let's see... Yui-chan, right?"

Yui gave a wide grin, showing her off snaggletooth.

He chuckled. "Well, then, it's been a while, hasn't it? Have you been doing okay? There hasn't been any problems, has there?"

"Nope!"

"I see, I see. That's good to know."

"Yup!"

"Hey, hey. Wait just a minute!" Hisako intervened the friendly conversation between the two. "Minamoto-sensei, sorry, but you know all of us?" _This can't be just coincidence._

"Oh, that's right. Surprisingly, I do. I didn't think you all would be friends." He took a look around.

"Why don't we talk about this elsewhere."Minamoto said to the group after a pause for some afterthought. "There's no point in continuing the conversation out here on the street."

* * *

**In the Hospital...**

Minamoto unlocked the door to his office and led the way in.

_Looks cleaner than before. At least there's no papers on the ground like last time. _Iwasawa took note of the newfound view of the ground, which she was unable to see during her last visit.

Yui took a book put from the small wooden shelf next to her and opened. Her eyes scrunched together in frustration immediately after. _What the hell is this?_ She asked herself. The random book she had picked out was on the subject of brain and nervous system. Not her forte.

The doctor pulled back the black office chair away for the desk, swirled it around and sat down with a heavy sigh. He took a handful of papers that were separated from the stack next to them and paperclipped them together.

"Please wait a moment." he apologized quickly and took a black ball-point pen out to fill out a small post-it note before stuffing it into his large pocket attached to his white lab coat. He cleared his throat and turned to face the girls behind him.

Sekine raised her hand. "So, hey, mister. Can you tell us why you know all of us? Since, you know, it's kinda weird that we had the same doctor."

Irie nodded in agreement to Sekine's query. " And the hospital we were in was in the next town."

He adjusted his glasses as he spoke. "First off, I don't work for one place for too long. I like to travel around and find new places to work in."

Sekine slowly lowered her arm. "Oh..." _Well, that's boring._

"But..."

_But? Oooh! There's a 'but'! _

Irie took notice of the blond's excitement. _You find it that interesting? _She sighed.

"Someone informed me about these kids' comas and recommended me for take a look at what was going on."

"Someone?"

"Yes. I'm sure you have heard of the Takachi Company?"

_Takachi?_ Iwasawa knew that name from somewhere... but where?

It sounded familiar. But she couldn't put her finger on it.

Hisako gave him a flat look. "Of course. They're the most known company in this district. They do a lot of importing and exporting from other countries and a successful business company." she stated.

"Why?"

"Takachi has a health facility nearby and is requesting jobs for those in the medical field. I got a letter in the mail about participating for a job. I worked there for about a year. And that's when I got a call."

Yui shut the book in hand loudly. "A call?" she asked as she crouched back to the shelf's level and carefully put the book back where she found it.

Iwasawa carefully studied the doctor's actions, in case he did anything weird or suspicious. But she loosened up her body slightly. What kind of bad thing can this guy do? There's 5 of them and 1 of him.

_But its a good idea to keep her guard up. Just in case._

"A call from the Chief Director from the Takachi Medical Branch. They were in charge of the hospitals from here and few cities around."

"I didn't know that Takachi was in the health business too." Hisako remarked. "So, what this guy want?"

"He asked me to check out cases of comas in their hospitals, since there were quite a few."

"..." Iwasawa stayed silent.

"Ah, I don't know if you know this, but in an effort to wake those individuals who were unconscious in comas, the Chief Director had gave order to give you these new drugs that just recently just got developed."

Sekine's ears perked right up. "Drugs?" She gasped.

"We were experimented on like lab rats?"

The old man waved his hands in disagreement. "N-no! Of course not! I would never to have agreed to anything like that!" He cleared his throat. "It was just new medicine the Takachi Branch had created."

"Aw... I wanted to have super-awesome powers like they did in manga..."

Hisako whacked the side of Sekine's head. "Idiot!"

"Ow! What? You don't to want to fly or have a psychic power, Hisako?"

"You been reading too much manga." Irie muttered.

"Hey! Having powers would be amazing!" Yui exclaimed in defense for the blond.

"See? I knew I count on my cute kouhai to back me up!"

"It would the awesomest thing ever!"

"And? That was it? Just some new medicine?" Iwasawa asked Minamoto as she ignored the idiots next to her.

"Yes, but the drugs didn't seem to have any type of effect, since everyone woke up naturally and okay. But there just 1 or 2 who are still in recovery or rehabilitation."

"I see." Iwasawa walked to the door and placed her hand on the handle. "Thanks for the information." She twisted the handle. "Sorry for taking up your time."

"No problem. As long as it was at least some use for you."

"Hey, let's go." she called out the 4 still in the room. "It's already dark."

He got up from his chair. "You should get home now. It's dangerous at night."

Hisako and the others followed Iwasawa out to the entrance of the large health facility, with Minamoto in tow.

The automatic sliding doors shut quietly behind them.

"Oh!" Minamoto seemed to have remembered something.

"Have any of you experienced any changes from the time you woke up from your coma to just recently? Any mood changes, memory loss, or some sort of change?"

Iwasawa stopped from her brisk walk and turned a 180 to face him. "Memory loss?"

"Yes. It's a side effect for the drugs administered to you. Have you had any?"

"Actually, yeah. All of us have." Hisako looked at her band members for agreement.

Minamoto's eyes widened slightly. "So you have..."

"Is that bad?" Yui asked.

"No, it's not. Since you five are the only ones that were given the drugs that we were able to contact, I thought I ask so I know if the side effects were true. Now I know that they're not just a prediction."

"You didn't contact anyone else who got this drug thing?" Sekine inquired.

"As soon as they recovered, their families took them and moved away without leaving us an address or phone number so the staff here in the hospital couldn't ask about it."

He moved back towards the door. "Well, thank your help. I will inform this to the Takachi Branch so they may be able to do something about this."

Irie shook her head. "No, thank you for telling us all of this."

Minamoto smiled at Irie's politeness and walked back inside in the hospital, getting ready for any emergency call that could happen later that night.

The girls who were left outside, walked to the corner of the sidewalk before resuming their previous talk from earlier before they were interrupted.

Iwasawa sighed. Her back facing the ones behind her.

"Was it that hard to tell me that you couldn't remember what really happened?"

Hisako lowered the eyes to the concrete floor. "Sorry. But you seemed so eager to know when you first asked... so we kinda made up a story."

"And what were you going to say when you had regained your memories?"

"We were going to explain all that had happened and our reasons on why we lied to you." Yui almost shouted in protest.

"..."

"We didn't even realized a chunk of memory from being with the SSS was gone until you asked." Sekine tried to reason.

"So... that's why..." Irie tried to finish the explanation.

Iwasawa sighed again, heavily. "That's enough. No more."

"Iwasawa?" Sekine started. _Is she still mad?_

"It's dark. You should be getting home. I don't anything bad to happen just because I wanted to confront you guys over a stupid thing."

Hisako raised her gaze up to her. "Then...?"

"It's not your fault any of you had amnesia. It was the doctors' for injecting a weird substance into our bodies that hasn't even tested yet. So... I will forget any of this ever happen and the fact that I brought up that silly question in the first place. And..." the red head turned around to face them.

"It is important to me to know what in the world happened to my former comrades and whatever happened to fight against God. Whenever you get your memories back or ever feel like telling me, please do NOT lie to me about it again. I don't want to go hunt Yuri down and get her to give you her _punishment games_."

She could see them shiver like ice was poured down their backs.

Last time she witnessed one of Yuri's "games" as Yuri herself had called them, the poor guy who was given it, locked himself in a room and sat in the dark corner for a week muttering something incomprehensible over and over.

When he came out from his emo corner, it like he was completely different person for a really long time.

It was a sad sight to behold. Very, very sad.

And Yuri didn't even get through the middle of the game before he rushed out and went into emo mode.

"W-what are you talking about, I-iwasawa?" Sekine laughed nervously. "W-we wouldn't do anything like that never, ever again."

Not if you want to go through hell alive.

_Bet Yuri got some new ideas from a new game._

But a part Iwasawa was bluffing about going to find Yuri for something as insignificant as that. If she was going to find Yuri, she might as well ask for the truth. She wasn't the type of person to get revenge or try to get back at someone. She may ask for the reason of their dishonesty and maybe try to get them talk.

Forcing people wasn't her style.

Unless she absolutely have to.

Then she would. But very unlikely.

Irie gave blank stare up at the stars above. "Yuri's... punishment...games...?"

Hisako gave a smirk. "Yeah, the games that we so terrified of that we never even thought about failure in our missions." she softly clawed at Irie's shoulder. "Those punishment games."

"Ahh!" Irie let out a sharp shriek.

"All right, okay. Enough already. I didn't say that I was going to, it's not a guarantee that Yuri will come to deliver her game upon you."

Yui clasped her hands together. "Then there's hope for us yet!"

"That doesn't mean it can't happened."

"But now we have a tiny spark of hope!"

"I don't think the probability was that small..."

* * *

**At the train station...**

After a brief discussion about what Sekine considered a threat from Iwasawa, they had finally arrived at the train station, ready to go their separate ways for the night.

Sekine gave out a yawn. "Well, c'ya guys. I'm gonna hit the sack for today." she said with tears forming from the yawn in her light blue eyes. "Let's go, Irie. I'm tired."

Irie was tugged into the train by the blond, who yawned again. "Good night." she told the other two quietly, who were standing right by the train entrance. Yui lazily walked in after her.

"Night."

The doors closely shut after the pink haired lass and sped away into the tunnel.

Hisako stretched her arm limbs out. "Mhmm..." she looked at her best friend next to her.

"We should hurry up catch the other train."

She gave her warm smile. "Yeah. The train leaves in the next three minutes."

"Wha-? Three minutes?"

"'Better hurry up to catch the next train', right?"

"Don't say that so casually, Iwasawa!"

They ran to the next platform.

Hisako frantically, Iwasawa keeping pace to stay close the brunette.

"Train going to the next town is leaving in a minute!"

"Oh crap!"

* * *

** On the Train...**

Sekine's eyelids drooped heavily as she struggled to stay awake until she was able to relax on her bed. Oh, how she missed her fluffy bed and her soft pillows.

Irie fiddled with strands of stray lavender hairs, stroking them softly.

Yui, on the other hand, passed out into blissful sleep the moment she took a seat.

Minutes had passed quite fast, unknowingly to the few on the moving automobile. There was next to no one on the train with Irie, Yui and Sekine.

The train rocked to the side slightly came to a skidded halt at the platform. The force for the stop made Sekine fall out of her seat, her head getting the first of the impact with the ground.

"Ow!"

Promptly with reaching their desired destination, Yui unwillingly awoke. She yawned and rubbed her sleepy eyes.

"Are we here?"

Irie took Sekine's wrist and helped her up. "Yep. We're here." she responded after Sekine got to her feet.

"Ow... who put the floor there?" Sekine rubbed her cheek. It was a bit red after her meeting with the floor.

Irie ignored Sekine's comment about the ground. "Come on, let's get off the train before we get closed in."

Following Irie, the group safely got off the train and onto the concrete platform.

"Yui, are you going to be okay walking back to your house?" Irie asked her kouhai. _I don't want anything to happen to her, especially at this hour._

Irie wanted to make sure she got home without any problems, mostly due her maternal instinct.

Yui gave a light nod. "I'll be okay." She yawned once more.

Sekine, now wide awake, looked at her LDC screen on her phone and flipped the cell phone open. "Looks like Iwasawa and Hisako got home just fine."

Irie took a glance at Yui, who was already a few feet away, on the way back to her home.

Yui gave a small yelp of surprise when she nearly tripped over a stone on the ground, but quickly regained her composure and continued to walk.

Still wondering about following the klutz home, Irie watched Yui worriedly.

_She'll be alright..._

_Right?_

Sekine took Irie's hand and began pulling her to the direction of their house. "Come on, come on. Let's go."

"But..."

"Yui will be fine. Don't you remember all the strangle holds and fights she got into with Hinata?"

"...Yeah. You're right."

"See? Now let's hurry. I have sleep to make up for Hisako waking me up so early to go the baseball thing." Sekine said. _Stupid Hisako made me wake up at nine in the morning on the weekend! So early!_

The two girls walked under the streetlights silently together, on their way to their house.

Yui, on the hand, took off running as soon as she couldn't see her sempais.

_I hope he's still awake. _

She was hoping the blue haired baseball-playing boy would be there at his house, still awake.

Her breaths were becoming fast and unsteady as she ran.

"I really to have to get out more." she muttered under her breath. She was starting to get tired after running about a block.

But at least, just another block down til she got to her house.

A warm feeling grew from inside of her stomach.

_I want to talk to him as soon! Just a little longer!_

She turned the corner of the street.

_Almost there...!_

…

…

...?

"...!"

Yui's feet ceased in running and stopped completely.

"What the-?"

She was a few houses down from her own when stopped.

Remember that nice, warm feeling Yui had?

It was gone.

Froze over instantly the moment she she what was happening at her house.

Outside of her house was an ambulance. Standing next to it, was distressed neighbors.

Coming to the outside through the open door was paramedics holding a stretcher.

Yui' eyes widened in fear when she saw the person lying on the stretcher.

"Mom!"


	11. The Night Before

**All right, a new chapter up.  
**

**And I'm thinking about revising some early parts of the story. It won't change it at all too much and I think they were just some little details that right now, when I think about now, would make more sense if I changed it. But yeah. That's about it I guess...**

* * *

Light shimmered down through the window panes and hit the bed below without any vibration or feeling.

Iwasawa hesitated to open her sleepy eyes. But her mind already started to command her body to get up from her warm bed.

She yawned softly and her eyes went to the window.

_It's a nice day today. _She thought to herself.

_A good day to practice. I haven't been able to get enough practice in these last few days._

A pair of eyes traveled from the window to the corner of the room.

There, sitting on its stand, was a acoustic guitar, with a faint shine striped diagonally its maple brown body.

A small smile cracked across her face from just a short gaze at her guitar.

How precious it was to her, was immeasurable.

The wooden instrument got her through so many tough, dark times in the past and even in death, it didn't leave her side.

By singing her music, she was able to convey her emotions, her feelings, her thoughts, and her dreams.

Through music, her wishes were granted, though they were short.

But in the end, she is now able to sing freely, and together with her friends. Everyone.

"Now then..."

Iwasawa finished contemplating and sat up from her bed, threw her arms up into the air and stretched them out as far she could.

Time to get up.

Iwasawa lifted her body out of the bed, ready to go take a quick shower. She took another glace at the guitar.

_When I'm done, I can start practicing._

"Mmm..."

She froze immediately.

Iwasawa stopped herself from getting up.

"...?"

Did she just hear something?

_No way, must be my imagination._

She tried getting up again.

But...

Something just snaked around her stomach and prevent her from doing so.

"!"

_What the hell?_

Something warm surrounded her lower abdomen and ruffled against the white sheets.

_...Did the sheets moved?_

Iwasawa lifted the thin cotton material up.

And it revealed...

"..."

"Yui?"

Yes, there was Yui, arms wrapped around the older girl's waist.

"Mmmn." the girl gave another moan and puller herself closer her Iwasawa's body.

Iwasawa was about to shake Yui awake, but halted her action when she saw her face.

Her eyes was red and puffy and she had a troubled expression on.

_Did something happened to her last night? I'm sure Irie and Sekine was with her._

Yui gripped the bottom of her sempai's red tank-top, mumbling something so soft that Iwasawa couldn't make it out.

Iwasawa carefully pried her fingers off from the red clothing.

_What in the world happened to her?_

"Or rather..." Iwasawa thought aloud.

"How Yui even get inside my apartment?"

There was only one door outside and a few windows, but they were all locked. Iwasawa made sure of this when she checked them all before going to sleep.

It was an obvious fact that all the entrances inside this space was completely shut.

And yet, Yui was able to in.

_Unless, I missed something. _Iwasawa thought.

It was valid possibility.

She was tired when she got back, and perhaps she didn't lock the door.

_But I'm sure that everything was closed..._

She observed the sleeping girl on the bed once more.

_I'll just ask her when she wakes up. It's no good for me to ponder over something like early in the morning when I could just question Yui about it later. _Iwasawa reasoned.

Though Yui's presence in her small apartment made her a bit self-conscious about her memory.

* * *

"Hmm... What to do?"

Iwasawa wrinkled her brow she stood in front of the open refrigerator, with a small, slightly damp towel in her hand.

She surveyed in contents as she rubbed her red hair gently with the towel, in order to dry it a little faster after the quick shower just took.

A half full bag of bread, five eggs, frozen sausages, a small, unopened package of ham that she had recently bought, and about a dozen or so of water bottles were that was left.

She took out all that she could carry out of the cold compartment and laid on the somewhat large table behind her. Looks like its back to store to buy some food. Last time she went, she bought enough to last her a week, and extra cup noodles just in case.

But with a guest over, having something to eat might be an issue. Going to the convenience store later today would do her good, and seeing that she got her paycheck a few days ago from her part-time job, it shouldn't be much of a problem.

The towel was now draped around Iwasawa's shoulders so she wouldn't have to keep holding it as she got to work into making breakfast.

_This should be enough for the both of us. _She thought as she cracked open two eggs simultaneously with one hand and using the other to apply the seasonings of salt and pepper. Whisking them briskly with a fork, she then turned on the stove and place a nonstick pan on top.

Setting the eggs to the side for now, she cut through the plastic covering the sausages and broke them apart from each other from the ice that stuck together. She carefully set them into the hot pan, in order to avoid any splattering from the small amount of oil. Only cooking them enough to defrost them and getting a light golden brown color on it was quick task. She took them away from the heat and placed them on a plate with a paper napkin on top to drain any excess oil. While she waited for the toast to pop out from the toaster, she got the pan ready from the eggs.

Crash!

It came from her room.

Iwasawa turned around. Looks like her guest woke up. Better finish up.

She efficiently continued her morning meal. When everything was cooked to what she believed to be supposedly Yui's liking, from what she has been told by Yui about her mother and how she greatly praises her cooking, she laid out the food onto the table.

With a few thuds and crashes coming from the inside of bedroom, Yui tumbled out and staggered to the kitchen, rubbing her eyes. She didn't look like the early-bird type of person. Either that or whatever happened last night was still on her mind.

"Good morning." she mumbled as she fumbled with her fork as she reached for a bowl with other hand.

"Morning." Iwasawa responded from the kitchen sink to the sleepy eyed girl, who still looking gruelingly tired.

She ate in silence, with Iwasawa joining her after she washed some of the utensils.

After they had finished, Iwasawa took the empty plates and bowls from the table and placed them in the sink. She had left the now dry towel on the chair so it wouldn't fall while she was washing.

"Yui, go wash up. I'll take care of things here." she urged her to go into the bathroom to wake herself up.

"...Okay." Yui stood up and went into the bathroom hesitantly, softly closed the door shut. Once Iwasawa heard the water running, she began washing the dishes. She would have to wait a little longer until she was fully conscious and ready to talk.

With the dished cleaned and put away, Iwasawa decided to make a cup of coffee for Yui and herself. Since she didn't know her taste, she placed a jar of sugar and a carton of milk next Yui's cup. She kept her own black, for she had a slight preference to the bitterness, but she did occasionally enjoyed a cup of coffee with some side to sweetness to it. Having some caffeine in her system wouldn't hurt.

The door to the bathroom swung open.

_Looks she back to her normal self._

"Yo." Iwasawa greeted her kouhai.

"Iwasawa-san, you have a nice place here. I almost forgot that this wasn't my house when I woke up." Yui said. Not saying that Iwasawa's house looked like hers, but it had a similar comfortable feel of it.

Yui slid into chair and accordingly put her desired amount of sugar and milk in her drink and took a sip. She exhaled out of relaxation.

"Your food tastes great. Maybe I'll stay for while."

"Stay here? Why? Did something happen at home?" Iwasawa asked as she drank the half empty cup of coffee. Time to get business.

Yui stirred the spoon around and around in her drink. "Well... nothing really. Just a tiny thing."

"It must have been something for you to come all the way here in the middle of the night."

She saw Yui fidget and narrowed her eyes. _There's something bothering her._

"Actually..."

"Wait, let's move into the other room if we're going to talk." Iwasawa put her cup down on the table went into the living room, Yui shortly following after drank her coffee in one big gulp.

They sat on the white sofa facing the door. Yui rested her head in her arms as she laid down on her back, staring at the ceiling. Iwasawa sat on the arm of the sofa.

"My... mother..."

Oh no.

Iwasawa knew what was coming next. Yui and her mother held a very close relationship with each other. Since Yui's mother was really the only one that Yui could confide to and most likely the only person she had the chance to talk with during the time of her disability, their light conversations and the occasional strong disagreements about whether the television show they were watching was had a "Hollywood" effect embedded into it to only make what the people in that reality show seem to do the impossible or the so-called 'no rules, anything goes caged wresting match of the century' had staged fight scenes to make look like it was a brutal, bloody match to the death in order to get that grand prize.

So whatever happened to her mother to make Yui this upset, had to quite terrible.

"Last night... when I reached my house..." she had to pause. Otherwise she wouldn't been able to continue. She quickly buried her head into the soft sofa cushions. Iwasawa could hear a few sniffles from the trembling girl.

"Someone broke into the house."

This sounded a bit like Yuri's scenario.

"The robbers demanded money or anything worth money but my mother had already used up most of her pay this week and we don't anything valuable in the house because all the money was given to me to pay for my treatments."

Iwasawa listened intently and stayed quiet the entire time Yui was talking, her complete attention on her.

"When she refused to give anything away, they got mad and started smashing everything in sight and they beat my mom up badly. A neighbor heard loud noises from our house and called the police. The robbers ran out of the house when they saw the cars and heard the sirens, but one or two of them were able to escape and are still on the run." Yui lifted her head with tears threatening to overflow from her eyes at any moment.

"My mother took some blood transfusions to replenish the lost blood and will have an operation to fix the fractures and breaks in her arm and some ribs. But we don't even have enough money to pay for the surgery after."

"What about insurance?"

"We had to cancel 'cause it was getting too expensive."

Looks like Yui wasn't the only one with financial problems. Iwasawa reflected back on this. Yui had a single parent who worked twice as hard to get to end's meet and little more for any personal items or presents to give or buy for her one daughter who was physically disabled. No matter how hard you worked or how many jobs you had, it couldn't amount to as much money that two parents could make at the same time.

Yui's mother most likely had to cancel their insurance after not being able to pay for it and therefor it was taken away. Even now, though Yui's life is way better than it originally was, there was still some sort of trouble that occurred after and during her recovery period.

Yui sat up, drying the salty water that was coming from her eyes. Iwasawa had an overwhelming feeling to comfort the girl who was trying so hard not to show any more of her tears.

Iwasawa pulled the younger girl into an firm embrace, in an effort to console the girl that everything would be fine. But did she know this to be the truth? Would everything be fine, especially how the world revolved around the concept of money? She didn't know, but...

"So that's what happened." Iwasawa murmured, but still unsure on what was the right thing to say right now.

She felt her trembling in her arms. Who would do such a thing to this girl that it would risk her family's life and how might have to live her life from now on? But as those thoughts ran through the red head's mind, she probably knew. She knew that there was people who were like that in the this dirty world of theirs and it disgusted her to no end.

A flash of her father came up in her head.

_What the?_

_Why did she think of that man at this time? He had no relationship to what was happening to this moment. He, of all people, I'm sure had nothing to do with Yui and her family. No way._

She shook her head uncertainly. The pointless image of her father blurred faded away and she was to focus on the situation in front of her. Now was not the time to think about her own family.

Yui's sniffles had turned into sobs. She no longer controlled her emotions and let them run loose. She cried endlessly, not only from the fact that her beloved mother was in a serious condition at the hospital and the place she called home was ruined, but most likely also from sadness she kept hidden from her past.

When finally the sobs went down to where Yui had became still and calm enough to speak clearly she lifted her head and rested it on her sempai's chest.

"Sorry..." she apologized in a soft voice.

"For what?" Iwasawa lightly brushed her fingers through her pink hair. Yui's tail wagged a tad bit.

She mumbled her words. "For troubling you like this. Sorry."

Well, isn't this uncharacteristic of her.

"You are talking nonsense. This isn't 'troubling'. This is normal. It's natural for people to cry when something bad happens to them or to someone they love."

She gave a sniffle and wiped a stray tear from her face. "...You're right."

"All right then."

"...Hm?" Yui pushed herself away Iwasawa.

Iwasawa stood up. "Let's go."

"Eh? Go? Where?"

"Out. Walk around for a bit."

"But..."

"No buts. Now then, lets go." Iwasawa said. "Gotta get you some new clothes. You still wearing the same ones from yesterday."

Yui seemed to notice this for the first time. She looked at herself. "Ah, you're right." she said, surprised. "But don't worry. I was able to get some clothes from the house." she pointed a black suitcase in the corner of the room, next to the bulky radio set.

Funny... Iwasawa didn't see that there before...

"Well, you can't continuously use those day after day. I'll buy some new ones for you." The older girl insisted. "You're going to staying here for a while, aren't you?"

Yui finally conceded. "Okay, I'll go. But first I'm going to make a call and then change out of these clothes."

"Are you going to call your mother?"

She shook her head. "Nope. Hinata-sempai. I was supposed to call him last night." A shade of pink became visible on her face.

That's right. Hinata. She and him gave each other their numbers. She probably wanted to inform him about her current situation. Forgot about that guy.

"Phone's in the kitchen if you need it."

"Okay! And I'll be using your bathroom too." Yui grabbed her suitcase and raced into the said room.

On the way to her own bedroom to get into a nicer outfit, Iwasawa couldn't help but utter out a few words. "Geez. That girl." She said with a smile tugging at her mouth.

_But I guess that means, no practice today. _

_

* * *

_

** Out in the shopping district...**

"Wow! Look, taiyaki!" Yui exclaimed. With her cheery voice, you would've never have known that a while before now, she was all sad and depressed earlier. Apparently, a short talk with certain boy named Hinata Hedeki, brought her spirits back up. As the young girl ran towards the shop filled with the bean-paste pastries, another girl took her time joining with her, a smile placed on her lips. Both were dressed casually, and were enjoying the warm, pleasant temperature of the early morning.

Yui pointed to the fish-shaped bread. Her eyes begged for one, despite the fact she ate about an hour ago. "I want that!"

"You just ate though. You might get a stomachache." Iwasawa said. Yui urged her to get it for anyway. "But, you forget. I am a growing girl. We need to take in lots of nutrients so can grow big and strong." she argued.

"Really? I thought it was because you're a big eater."

"Aw, thanks." She took a glance to check if Iwasawa was being sarcastic or not, and pouted. "You eat one too."

"No thanks. I'll get one for you only. I'm not hungry." She ordered a red-bean paste taiyaki from the man behind the register. She gave the request amount of money to him, who in exchange, gave her the bread. She politely said her thanks and handed freshly baked bread to Yui.

She eyes lit up as soon as she took the first bite. "Thanks." she said between mouthfuls. Iwasawa smirked. "Hey. Don't talk with you're mouth full."

Crumpling up the napkin and popping the last few bites of taiyaki into her mouth like popcorn, she threw away the trash into a nearby trashcan. "Sorry." she gave a late apology, mixed a playful tone.

Walking on the sidewalk gave way to time that could be used for conversations. Yui and Iwasawa talked and discussed over their daily lives and every day routines. Their class schedules, likes and dislikes, favorite and hated things, what they do during their past times, and different types of topics.

Along with mystery of how Yui magically entered her living space. The women in charge of the entire building, the landlady in other words, met Yui as she staggered from the hospital after seeing her mother and packing any clothes that she had in her house in the middle of the night. Yui refused the offer of staying in the kind lady's apartment until the morning and instead asked for a specific person's room number and key. The landlo- landlady, obliged to this and handed Yui a spare key to her accommodations.

When asked how Yui was able to find out where she was living, regardless the fact that Iwasawa didn't give her an address, she simply said: "Don't underestimate the powers of a fan." with a hearty laugh that sent a shiver down Iwasawa's spine.

Now she knew. To be careful of her fans.

Before they knew it, more than three hours had blown by, with them coming to a stop in a park, resting on a wooden bench.

Yui stood and headed towards the ladies' public restroom. "I'll be back. Wait there!"

Iwasawa leaned into the bench. Breathing in the crisp, clean air and absorbing the mildly subtle sun rays made her feel at ease. _It was good thing that I decided to do this today._ _I was worried that Yui wouldn't be doing so good after all that happened._

That was one of reasons why she wanted to go out today. And that it was a Sunday with nothing to do. _Though I could have practiced the day away. I wanted to write a new song... _she thought.

_But then I'll have to go grocery shopping later. Have to set some money aside for that._

The silent muffled ring cut her thoughts. She pulled out her cell form her jeans pocket and looked at the screen. _Hisako? _

"Hello?"

"Ah, Iwasawa!" Hisako sounded quite happy this morning. "Are you free today?"

"Unfortunately not."

"Why?" she whined. Her mood changed from overly excited to irritated. Iwasawa can just imagine the brunette on the other line about to throw a fit. "Fine! You know what? I don't care about you anyway anymore." and she hung up and line went dead.

_I bet right now Hisako ran out of her house to go wander around right about now. She can act so childish sometimes... She'll have to find something else to do._

"Sorry to keep you waiting!" Yui hollered. She was back. "Did someone call?" she gestured to the cell phone in Iwasawa's hand.

"Nope. Just checking the time."

"Oh, okay."

She lied. For she was on a mission. An important mission.

To make sure Yui doesn't think to much about last evening's events.

… But it doesn't hurt to see her mother before the day ends either. Just to ensure that Yui won't have a bad night worrying over her.

They still had plenty of time. It was about noon at the moment.

"Hey, Yui you want to go get your new clothes now?"

"Okay!" she happily agreed.

**Okay. So next chapter might be up before the end of the month... Maybe. It's been something I wanted to write about for a while.**

**The more I think about the next chapter, the more I wonder about how this story will end...**


	12. Learing Something New

**So I came back with an update. Yup. **

**Sorry for the lateness of this chapter. I finally got a break from everything and was able to write, though I wish I had more time. I think this one was written in a bit of a rush. xP**

**Enjoy the story~!  
**

* * *

Iwasawa yawned as she took her time walking to school. Yui had left about an hour earlier, saying something about meeting up with Irie and Sekine to do an important "project" they recently started. Hisako and herself wasn't informed about this project of theirs, but it probably was something incredibly stupid and she wasn't really feeling like being a part of it.

Just a few more blocks until she reached the entrance of the school. Not that she was particularly excited on going. It was starting to get to be a pain, coming and going back and forth from her home and the large education center. She scowled at the thought that she was spending so much of her time there than with her music. Heck, it's been a while since she written new song lyrics or even composing some new beats and rhythms for the band to practice in case there was another chance for them to preform again on a stage.

"Hey! Iwasawa!" an oddly familiar voice called out to the thinking redhead who was lost in thought.

Hisako started running and as soon as Iwasawa's ears picked up on the sound of footsteps behind her, she was tackled and put into a bone-crushing embrace. "Good morning!" Ah, well. At least she wouldn't have to keep thinking about her previous thoughts since they were now replaced with trying to find a way to breathe. "G-good morning, H-hisako."

Hisako release her best friend and gave her a wide toothy grin. "Sorry, sorry." she apologized. "I just felt like surprising you." she said with her award-winning smile still plastered on her face.

Taking a step back to keep her distance from another death hold and to take in some air, Iwasawa eyed her suspiciously. "Are you usually in this 'good' mood of yours?" she still remembered that the other day, Hisako was in the exact opposite mood after her quick talk with her on the phone.

"Oh, that." She laughed it off. "That was nothing." She laughed again.

Iwasawa took her iPod out of her pocket and put one of the earphones in her ear with an amused expression on her face as she set it to shuffle. She offered the other earphone piece to Hisako. "Wanna listen?" She wasn't into morning talks.

"Thank you." Hisako gratefully plucked them out of Iwasawa's hand and took at listen her playlist.

Ever since their unexpected run-in with each other a few months back, every morning when Hisako and Iwasawa walked together to school, it would started with a short talk about the day before and then the rest of the way would be filled with silence between the two to listen to Iwasawa's seemingly endless playlist, only to be broken by a remark or comment about the particular song that was currently playing.

After ten minutes later, the pair arrived near the school grounds with the large gate in view. As soon as they entered the grounds, Iwasawa put away her iPod into her school bag until later use. They calmly walked across the smooth asphalt and went towards the back of the school since it was 15 minutes or so until the daily school bell would ring for the start of class.

Hisako was originally planning on getting into class early to finish some homework she lazily refused to do the night before, but a rather large crowd of people were blocking the doors into the school building. The area around the door was flocked with screaming students. Her morning just got a little louder.

"Tsk." Damn. Looks like she'll have to improvise. "Hey, Iwasawa. Let me borrow you math homework." Hisako grabbed the shoulder strap of Iwasawa's school bag that she was holding loosely. Iwasawa made no effort against her action as she was focused on something else. More specially the crowd.

Hisako pulled out the sheet of papers from the bag and slipped them into her own. She would copy some of this during homeroom. Not that matters. It's due by the end of third period anyway.

"Hisako."

"What?"

"Do you hear that?" Iwasawa pointed to the center of the mass of people.

"Hear? Well, all I can hear is screaming."She replied flatly.

"No. I meant can you hear Sekine from here?"

Sekine? Why the hell would Sekine be in the midst of that? Hisako listened more closely. One voice was just a little louder than all the others and frankly stood out to her the most.

"All right everybody! Line up in an orderly fashion and the faster this will go!" Sekine called out. She held something that looked like a photo in one hand.

Hisako's eyebrows creased. "What the hell is that idiot doing?"

In that center of the crowd was in fact, Sekine, along with Yui in a booth made of wood that was poorly made. Sekine stood up on a stool to make her voice reach out farther. "Get your 'Girls Dead Monster' merchandise here! Photos for 150 yen! Buttons for 100!" Sales were off the charts today.

Irie ran behind to the booth to Sekine and Yui. "Hurry up! Iwasawa and Hisako are here now!" she whispered to the two.

"Aw crap!" Yui shoved the jar full of money into her bag. " Sarge! What do we do?" She looked at Sekine for help.

"Let's go for now. Captain! Help us clean this up!" Sekine jabbed a finger at Irie.

"Sorry everyone! Store's closed!" she yelled out to the crowd. Some disappointed sighs and complaints were made from what Yui would call "crazed" students. Sekine jumped down from her stool and snatched the items left on the booth table before some weirdo could take them. Irie and Yui had already took the the rest in a metal box with a combination lock on it.

Sekine stuffed what she had in her hands into her bag. "Lieutenant!" she turned to Yui. "Is everything in order!"

Yui saluted her. "Yes sir! All evidence has been erased from the area!"

"The only thing that's left is the equipment!" Irie added quickly as she started taking down the booth before the all the students went away from the scene. "Wait, why am I doing this again?"

"Because it's a soldier's duty to help his fellow companions in a battle, comrade!" Yui replied to her quickly and ran inside the school building to hide the top banner.

"This isn't a battle though..."

In moments, the booth was taken down and separated into different parts and hidden throughout the inside of the building behind the trio along with the rest of the students gone.

"F-finished." Irie panted. Sekine gave a thumbs up. "Good work, you two. We have averted a crisis. Lieutenant, have our ammunition been properly stored?"

Yui returned her gesture with her own. "Yes sir!"

The blond gave a weak smile. "Mission complete. And just in time too." She had noticed Iwasawa and Hisako were walking up to them.

The drummer casually gave her morning greeting to the duo.

"Ow!"

"Ow-ow-ow!" Sekine had tears in her eyes from the pain. Hisako had pinched Sekine and Irie's cheeks.

"Wat er yu doin'!" Sekine cried. Translation: "What are you doing!"

"What were you guys doing? Causing a mess before the day even started!"

Iwasawa chuckled lightly at the two. They did got along well. It does make sense they would be part of something like this.

"Hm?" In the corner of her eye, she could see something shining on the floor. She bent over to pick it up. "What's this?"

Yui scrambled over to the thing and got hold of it before the older girl could. "A-ah, t-this? It's mine. I guess I dropped it earlier." She laughed nervously.

Hisako released Irie and Sekine. "What is it? Let me see."

Yui shot a worried glance at Sekine, who understood the situation instantly. Now's not the time to get found out. She stood up and ran to Hisako. "W-what are you doing Hisako? That's probably Yui's personal item. You can't just go and take it. What was it called- ah, 'Curiosity killed the cat', right?"

"Since when did you starting random sayings?"

"W-well, you know, forever. I guess you don't know me as well as I thought, Hisako."

Hisako had a look of disbelief on her face before a smirk replaced it. "I see. I see. Something personal, huh?" She went up to Yui.

"Wh-what?"

"Nothing." and the brunette suddenly put Yui into a headlock. "Iwasawa, now!"

"I can't believe I'm doing this." the red head muttered before plucking the thing out of Yui's hand. The fanged girl let out a small cry of surprise. Hisako released Yui and took a look at her belonging. She gasped and Iwasawa stared nonchalantly at the picture.

Iwasawa had in her hand a picture of herself taken from the time the band was practicing before the school festival. She hadn't recall anyone taking her picture nor a flash signaling that she was being photographed. The only ones in that room was the band members and Yui. Was the room bugged?

_Wow, stalker much? _Iwasawa mentally sighed. Since when did she have stalkers?

But, she must say, she did look good in this photo.

"I-isn't it natural for me have a picture of Iwasawa-san? I am the band's biggest fan, after all." Yui stumbled over her words a little. She took a step backwards and knocked over her bag. "Crap!" There goes their "project."

The metal box that she in her bag fell out and the contents was scattered out. Dozens of pictures, buttons, and other goods of the band members spilled out.

"Dammit Irie! Did you forget to lock the box?" Sekine raged, shaking Irie by the shoulders. "Everything's ruined!"

"I thought I did! Besides, they were going to find out eventually!"

Iwasawa folded her arms as she watched Yui carefully put everything back in the box, Irie and Sekine bickering, and Hisako shaking her head in disappointment.

And that was how the day had started for Iwasawa.

At least she now knew how the band never seemed to run out of money. And it looks like today would be a good day to buy an amp for her guitar. Lucky her.

* * *

"Can anyone translate this paragraph?" the teacher pointed at the sentence written on the board and called on a random student in the class. "Irie Miyuki, read."

Irie nearly fell out of seat. "A-ah! Yes! Uhm..." He didn't have to use her full name though...

Behind her sat Sekine who was glaring at the page in the book of which she knew she was supposed to translate from Japanese to English. _Why the hell was it necessary for Japanese people to learn English? It's not like everyone in this class will go fly off to America or help a foreigner at the airport? English is too confusing for young minds like ourselves. Poor American children that have to learn this language! _Sekine's mind was currently in the state of ranting about the universal language.

_Since it came down to this... I have no choice._

The blond picked up her book and pencil and stood up.

"Okay, good job - hey, Sekine Shiori, where are you going?" The teacher asked Sekine. She slid the door open and casually walked out of the room. "Hold on, I'll be right back."

"Wai-!"

The door was slammed shut.

Sekine opened the door to the next class. Several students looked her way as she went over to Hisako. After all, the best thing you should do if you don't understand something, is to ask for help, right?

"Hisako, help me with this will ya." She didn't notice the sweatdrops around the room at her gesture as she pranced over the guitarist's desk.

Hisako raised an eyebrow. "Why? And, we're in class. Go back to yours."

Sekine sulked. "But I'm gonna get called on next and I need help translating this. Besides, this period is an English class too. You might have to do the same thing I'm doing right now. It's like killing two birds with one stone. You can help out a dear friend of yours and have a sneak peek at future work will might have to do."

Was the to stares from the rest of the class not bothering the blond? Because everyone the room was watching the two and overhearing their conversation.

"No. Do it yourself."

"You need to lighten Hisako. Are you mad because your doing bad in this subject?"

"Shut up! I'm doing fine thanks!" A wave of annoyance passed through the brunette.

"But your reaction tells me that I might have hit the nail."

"Just hurry up and get out please." Hisako sighed. "Wait, I need to get the answer first." Sekine quickly changed her attention. "Iwasawa."

The redhead glanced up from her book. "Hm? What's up?" She obviously wasn't paying any attention to what was happening around her.

"Help me with this, will ya." Sekine dumped her book down on her desk. "This part." She placed her finger at a start of paragraph. Or what she thought was the paragraph anyway. The girl was completely lost at this type of things.

Iwasawa blinked. "You mean the whole page?"

"...I guess?" Sekine gave a nervous look to the redhead. "Hey, I'm no expert on this stuff." She crept a bit closer to Iwasawa as she studied the page before writing the translation down in her English notebook. She should've went to Iwasawa first.

"Nor you will ever be if you keep depending on people to do your work." Hisako cut in. "Iwasawa." She slammed her fist down on her desk to get to point across. "Don't help her. She needs to learn these things by herself. She won't learn anything just by watching you do all the work."

"How rude!" Sekine huffed. "I learn by example. I don't to be led around little kid. I can do things by myself."

"Then go back to class and do your work there."

"Can't. I have to wait for Iwasawa to write me the translation."

"Finished." Iwasawa handed Sekine a piece of paper from her notebook. "Here." Sekine beamed and glomped the girl. "Thankyouthankyouthankyou!" Her words were said all at once.

"Iwasawa!" Irritation was laced in Hisako's voice.

"You wanted her to go back to class. I figured that she would only go back unless I do this for her." Iwasawa stated tiredly, taking into account of what her best friend had said. Hisako slammed her fist down again. "Yeah, but-!"

"This way gives faster results to your problem than what you were doing." Iwasawa stopped Hisako before she could go back and scold her. Her reasoning did make more sense. "Look. She's already left." She pointed to the open class door. "Also, don't you think we wasted enough time for everyone as is?"

Some of the students still sweatdropped at the scene Sekine had created with her entrance. The brunette cleared her throat. "Y-your right." She took notice that Rena stood up and slowly closed the door with an amused expression on her face. "But do not help her next time." She demanded at her best friend who just nodded absentmindedly.

Hisako turned back around in her chair and the teaching resumed.

**Minutes later...**

The door slid back open.

"Iwasawa! I need hel-"

"GET OUT!"

* * *

The vocalist of Girls Dead Monster zipped her schoolbag closed. Just a mere five minutes until school's out and gosh, time went by horridly slow when you watch the clock's hands move.

_Tick, tick..._

"And, if you take this number and..." the teacher's voice just seem to drawl on and on in Iwasawa's opinion.

_Tick, tick..._

Almost there...

_Tick, tick..._

Just one more minute...

_Riiiing!_

Finally the bell rang. Relief passed through the girl. All she wanted to do was to get a guitar and sing. Maybe everyone's up for a band practice today.

Perhaps a new song might pop up in her head one of these day. You never know. Inspiration can come at any given time.

"Hisako." She tugged on the girl's shirt that sat in front her. All she got was light grunt.

"Want to practice today?"

"Already ahead of you. I already told the others during lunch. First, I need to get something from my locker and then I'll head straight over there." Hisako replied automatically. She must have known that this would come up. Aw. It's nice having friends who understand you. "Let me go grab it and we can walk there together." She grinned and ran out of the room. "Be right back!"

Okay, looks like her wish was about to granted. All of things were packed in her bag already so now she would have to wait of her best friend to back.

"Iwasawa! Perfect timing!" Ai appeared at the door. "You have a visitor. He's waiting in the front of the school."

He? Now this was new. She wasn't expecting anyone to come and see her. Heck, she didn't knew anyone who would. Especially a guy.

"Thanks. I'll go there right now." Iwasawa said. She'll have to make Hisako leave without her then. "Ai, can tell Hisako about this when she comes? Tell her to go on without me."

Ai nodded. " Okay. I have to stay in class. I have cleaning duty today anyway." She folded her sleeves up as she fist-pumped the air. "Time to get to work."

As Iwasawa was nearing the front, her mind went over what she was just told.

A man was waiting for her at the front of the school. It couldn't be anyone from a recording studio, since she didn't send single recording of her. Not yet anyway. If it was anyone from work, they would've called her cell. And it was most definitely not anyone close to her. She hadn't interacted much with guys ever since she recovered from her long stay in a hospital bed.

But there was Dr. Minamoto... But... No... He had no reason to come.

Her thoughts had absently led her the meeting spot of the mystery person. Iwasawa surveyed the area. No one in sight but, as what Ai said, a man who was dressed in a suit and tie sitting on a nearby bench. He had noticed the redhead from where he was at and walked over to her.

"Hey. It's been a long while."

Iwasawa's eyes widened in surprised before a smirk formed at her lips. How interesting.

"Out of all the people I knew, you were last one on my mind..."

The tall imposing man stood in front of her.

"...and most likely the last person I want to see."

"Is that the way you should be speaking to your father?"

* * *

**To be continued...**


	13. Memories

"Is that the way you should be speaking to your father?"

Iwasawa closed her eyes for a moment before replying. "Father? I never thought as you as father."

It was true. Looking back, this man proclaiming to her "father" did no such action to even seem at all like a fatherly figure in her life. If she were to define him as something, the first words that would come up in her mind would be "drunken piece of crap with a short temper." Yeah, that looks about right.

He snorted.

"Your vocabulary has improved since last I saw you."

Her back leaned onto the wall behind her. "No, my vocabulary was always like this. I just hadn't had the chance to say aloud." She folded her arms. "And what about you? Have you cleaned up your mouth a little? It's rare for me to hear such words coming out from your mouth without you screaming them out or going on a violent rampage."

His eye twitched as a few shades of emotion that couldn't be described were very subtly flashed on them. "You have have quite the tongue. I don't remember raising you to be like this."

"You're right, you didn't. I picked up a few things from you and my "mother" during your daily nonsense. I learned quite a bit from listening to the both you constantly yell and _enunciate_ your colorful words very clearly since our walls were unfortunately, paper-thin. It was always a wonder for me that no matter how much you would holler at each other, not once did you lose your voice. You wouldn't believe how many times I prayed that the arguing would stop." She felt herself lose her normal character and slip slowly into a new one

The things that she wanted to say back then, the damn things that couldn't say back then because she was too scared of the consequences of saying too much were coming back to her. What she left buried somewhere in a lost corner of her heart was starting to be uncovered. And she had no intention of holding it back.

BAM!

A fist collided with the wall behind her. She involuntarily flinched a little as her body recalled a similar situation. Her father lowered his head so he was inches to her face. He glared at her as his fist stayed in placed. "You damned brat." He breathed. Iwasawa could smell lingering smell of liquor with every slow breath he took. "Let me get this through your skull," he spat, "because it would seem that after spending so much time in the that hospital, your brain has melted into mush."

* * *

"Iwasawa!" A flushed Hisako burst into the empty classroom. Or almost empty.

"Hisako!" Ai jumped a mile up in the air from the guitarist's sudden entrance, even though she was expecting her appearance for a while now. She took in a deep breath to calm her nerves.

"Oh, Ai. What are you doing here?" Hisako asked, not noticing the fright she gave the other girl. Her face returned to its normal color. She was an athlete after all. Running up and down a few flights of stairs is nothing for her.

"I-I'm on cleaning duty today, so I stayed behind." Ai picked up the broom next to her and set away to the side.

"Okay..." She glanced at the board. There in plain sight was the names of those who have to clean the classroom today at the bottom corner of the whiteboard.

"If your looking for Iwasawa-san, then she's not here."

"What? She left without me?"

"Not exactly... She had to go meet someone in front. You didn't see her on your way here?"

Now it was Hisako's turn to be surprised. "No, I ran up the back stairway 'cause I thought it would be faster. But a visitor? For Iwasawa?"

"Yeah. Some guy. She says to go on without her." Ai passed on the message that she was told to do. Which was flew past the brunette's ear and out the other before her brain could catch it.

"Whaaa-?" Was all she could say. Hisako was left dumbstruck. A guy? Waiting for Iwasawa? "Wha-! When? How? Why?" All logical reasoning dissipated into oblivion. Incoherent ideas and random fantasies: taking over.

"A boyfriend?"

Ai sweatdropped at the outburst. She wasn't sure if she should explain everything out right now, since the brunette was most certainly not in the right mindset at the moment. Now she understood Rena's feelings better when she was has to go through Ai's overreacting.

"No, Hisako... Not a boyfriend-"

"A lover?"

Facepalm.

Oh boy. This might be hard.

* * *

Sekine ruffled her hair as she stared at her notebook. Full of scribbles and phrases. How was the task of completing her homework supposed to be done?

"Aw, screw it!" She threw the notebook across the room in fit with a soft 'thud' from coming in contact with the white wall and landing on the tiled floor. " I give up!"

"Don't say that, Shiorin. You didn't even try." Irie set a cup of earl gray down on the desk next to the blond and straightened out her skirt. "The right of you saying that you give up is invalid and doesn't apply to you."

"Shut it, Miyukichi." The blond muttered. Damn English!

Yui, who just finished with singing _Little Braver_, took a chug from her water bottle and with a refreshed voice she added, "Are you stupid? English is easy."

"Then can you do this?" Sekine practically shoved her English textbook at Yui when she came near. Yui pushed it away. "Nope." She lightly pounded her chest proudly. "Because English is unnecessary for me. I paid no attention in class, for I will never come across a foreigner or go to America."

Irie looked at her sceptically. "Really? How do you know?"

"Because that's why my sempais are there for me!"

"Geh."Sekine stifled a twitch at her eye. "Hisako and Iwasawa won't be there for you forever, you know." At the realization of her own statement, she felt her heart drop a little, as well as the steady silence that was quickly filling the room. Irie fiddled with the handle of her cup.

"Forever... huh?" Her eyes traveled to the window next to her, as if to get away from the dreary atmosphere being created. "...?"

"...Iwasawa?" The name came as hesitant and quiet as she tried to visually confirmed that it was the vocalist down below.

Yui perked up from the name. She left her spot next to Sekine to see herself. Sekine tilted her chair back until it was on its two back legs.

"You're right."

Yui started to unlatch the hinge that was keeping the window closed. "Sem-" She was cut short when the drummer covered her mouth before she could complete what she was going to say. "Idiot, what are you doing?" Irie said. Muffled responses were all that the pink haired girl could say, but was easily interpreted by the other two beside her.

Sekine held a finger to her lips, signaling them to be quiet, to not interrupt what was going on down at ground level with their band leader.

It looked like she was having an intense conversation with man. Sekine could see Iwasawa tense up as she spoke but immediately relax when she was done.

_Too bad we can't hear what their saying. _Sekine thought. A urge to go down an eavesdrop on Iwasawa was nagging at the back of her mind.

Irie peered below and tucked a stray strand of her lavender hair from her face due to slight breeze from the open window. Th red head looked... less composed than she usually did. She couldn't see the man's face from the angle she was at, but from the tiny voice in the back of her mind, she could tell that there was something wrong of this scene. _If only we could hear what they're are saying. _She bit her thumb uncharacteristically.

The mystery man raised his hand into the air and punched the wall facing towards them. For a second, Irie thought she felt a slight vibration from the impact.

"Oh crap." Sekine pushed her chair back into its original position. "That's not good."

"Oh hell no!" Yui had a bad reaction to the guy. "That bitch did not just do that!"

Before Sekine or Irie could stop the rampage, Yui had already stormed out of the room in a flash.

"That idiot!" Sekine stomped the ground in frustration. "Miyukichi!" Irie nodded.

"I already know. Let's go catch up to her before she does anything stupid." The drummer and bassist left in such a hurry that they forgot to close the door.

"Okay? You understand now?"

Ai had finally gotten Hisako out of the delusional fantasy world she was in. She had the girl sit down and make her listen to what she was saying. It wasn't easy though.

"Yeah." Hisako nodded.

Ai breathed a sigh of relief. "Good. Now you should hurry to everyone else. You shouldn't keep them waiting." She made a "shooing" gesture as the brunette picked up her Jazzmaster guitar in its black case.

"Yeah." Hisako pushed in her chair as she stood up. "Thanks for the info."

"No problem."

"By the way..." she was halfway out of the room before she stopped. "You don't happen to know who that guy is, do you?"

Ai lifted a desk out of her way. She mulled on this thoughtfully. "No... it's not someone I know."

"Oh. Oh, alright."

"But," Her shoe made a small skidding sound as she moved back and forth with broom. "It might her father or something." Father?

"Fa-!"

Hisako suddenly rushed out of the room, leaving a confused Ai who shrugged it off and continued her work.

In her hurry, the guitarist flew down the stairs, jumping off the handrails the last couple of flights.

_Damn! Why didn't I realized it earlier! _Hisako mentally smacked herself.

_But why?_

One of her hands was already a clenched fist, ready to be thrown at the bastard who made her best friend's life a miserable one.

Best friend... For some reason, a grin played at her features as a memory of her first day entering this school.

_Iwasawa never did like admitting that I was her best friend, did she?_

_

* * *

_The red head turned her head away to the side to get some air, instead of inhaling the musty scent of alcohol, a smell she wasn't very fond of. She grimaced when the form in front of her exhaled. How annoying this was for. Her back was pressed up against the hard wall and being forced to listen to excuses and rants from the man who was currently and previously giving her rough time. _ This should in reverse. Shouldn't I be the one up in your face telling you crap about you did to me?_ Iwasawa thought as he carried on.

"-it... Hey!" He harshly grabbed her uniform and pulled up so she could face him. "Are you listening to me, Asami?"

"...Asami?"

"What? You don't even know your own name? How pitiful can you get?"

_Asami. Iwasawa Asami._

She repeated it internally. _Asami. Asami._ _Not bad. _Iwasawa liked the sound of that. At least her parents had the mind to give her a decent name. She kinda thought that they would choose some stupid name that she would have to change later. Looks like she won't have to now.

"Maybe." Iwasawa pretended to play dumb. Perhaps she should to try wring out some of her lost "information" while she's at it. She learned her name, for the most part. "But who are you to use my name? That's rude. It's Iwasawa. I-wa-sa-wa." She said the syllables of her name slowly, like she was talking to a small child. "Since you know mine... let me ask for yours? I don't ever recall you telling me your name." His grip tightened.

"Don't you screw with me, Asami!" She squirmed beneath his grip. "You know very well who I am!"

She shrugged her shoulders almost helplessly, but awkwardly. "Iwasawa... Ryugo, right?" He loosened the clenched hand holding her. "How's...mother?" She felt uncomfortable asking this. Anything related to her parents were uncomfortable for her to talk about, even sometimes thinking. Yet, these people... were still also were parents. Her birth parents. The ones that gave life to her. That fact will never change, so she had some sort of respect for them.

Her mother, Iwasawa Akiha, was what she considered to be more of the sane one in the marriage relationship. While her father was gone, whether it was going out drinking or working, Akiha would be the one usually home with Iwasawa in the small house after her work, if you can call it a house.

They lived in a two-bedroom home, which was why Iwasawa didn't have her own room. Akiha and Ryugo would sleep in different rooms, leaving Iwasawa to sleep on the carpet floor or on the couch, since there were no futons available, but only if Ryugo wasn't unconscious on it after drinking so much. On occasion though, her mother did invite her to sleep on the bed with her.

Most of the money went to supporting the house or alcohol, any leftover would be for groceries. Of course the money made by Ryugo would be kept to himself and Akiha would be left to pay the bills. One of the reasons why arguments would spring up. Iwasawa often went out to find a job, despite her age, for anything else she needed like clothes. But did serve another purpose for her. Getting out of the hellhole she would have to eventually return too at the end of the day.

Iwasawa later found out why her parents were brought together although they had, well, various problems with each other. It was an arranged marriage, set up by their own parents. And divorce? That has been brought up many times with no avail. The families from both sides refused to let them have a divorce because of an agreement they had made long ago and, which in fact, had no say in what Ryugo and Akiha wanted. So in way, they also suffered a harsh life. And shoved some of it onto their daughter, Iwasawa Asami, who was born due a "drunken accident" as called by her father from sides.

"You're mother left," he replied laconically. "She went to America. Wanted to get as far from here as possible she said." The red head could understand that. If she could, she would've done so long ago.

"Iwasawa!"

A blur blew past her. And what looked like a fist collided with Ryugo's face. Iwasawa was taken off balance by the sudden attack and due to a certain someone holding her nearly by the neck literally, she almost fell along with her father. Ryugo was flown a good six of seven feet from the blow.

"You okay?" Hisako held Iwasawa's shoulder possessively.

"Hisako?"

"Iwasawa!" Irie, Sekine and Yui appeared behind Hisako.

"D-dammit, Hisako. H-how you get here before us? Just a minute ago, you were still on the stairs and we were almost at the door." A out of breath Sekine said. Irie had her hands on her knees, trying to catch her own. "Idiot. Did you forget who I am?" Hisako narrowed her eyebrows as she looked in shame at the blonde. Yui stood in front of Iwasawa with an arm out stretched protectively. "You bastard! You almost hit sempai!" she growled, her fangs glinted in the lighted.

Iwasawa blinked. "Why... why are you guys here?"

"We saw you from upstairs in the classroom while we talking" Irie said. She left out some parts of the whole story though.

"Ai told me you've be down here." Hisako put a hand to her hip. "But I didn't think I get to see your dad today when I left my house this morning." The other three gasped.

Ryugo came back up to his feet. "Now I know what kind of influence you been having around you, Asami." he smirked. A trail of blood flowed freely down his cut lip. He wiped away with his black sleeve. A dark bruise was beginning to form on his left cheek.

"Asami?" Sekine asked. Iwasawa shook her head, not wanting to get into detail now. "I'll tell you later."

"Oh?"

His dark eyes laid themselves on Irie. "This is interesting."

Irie fidgeted under his gaze. Iwasawa glared back at him.

"Are you... Irie Miyuki by any chance?" he asked, now staring directly at her.

The girl in question faltered in her reply. Her name being spoken by a stranger... was a thing that was not enjoyable for her. Now that random people know her name, an unsettling feeling stirred in the pit of her stomach. "Yes... I am. Why... do you know my name?"

"You're the daughter of Irie. Irie Takeru, founder of the Irie Corp. Anyone and everyone who is in the medical business would know his name." Irie found her body tensing.

Sekine looked at Irie worriedly. She was afraid that some scars that Irie held was going tear open from hearing something of her parents. She knew about the drummer's life, as did the rest of the band members.

Irie's father, Takeru was newcomer in the medical and pharmaceutical business. It started as small clinic in a the city and with Takeru, and his wife, Harumi, it grew into large scale corporation in less than five years. Harumi had a degree in business and marketing so growing the company and keeping it stable was a breeze for her.

Yet nothing has a price.

Because Takeru and Harumi were constantly working, this meant time out of the city. Time that could've been spent with their daughter, Miyuki, who was born shortly after the corporation started to get a reputation. Once in a blue moon, one of them would come home but only briefly before going back. At the most a week was spent their daughter but usually just for a few days. Even if they were home, they dove their paperwork, not stepping out of their office.

Irie lived in large house, which could also be called as a mansion. She played by herself most of time since toys were abundant with the coming wealth. She was home schooled, tutored by the teachers who were hired by her parents, so she had no friends outside the estate. A sheltered life she lived for nearly thirteen years of life. She became reserved and quiet, rarely speaking only if needed.

Wanting to get away from the loneliness that she was always around her, she, like the others, found comfort in music.

With a particular fondness of the drums, Irie bought her own set of drums and began to teach herself how to play.

The rolling of the cymbals or the pounding or the snare is the best sound that Irie heard in a long time. All of her time, other the daily necessaries that that has to done, was spent on drumming, often for hours on end or until her body was sore from flailing around as she practiced and practiced. Bliss, sheer bliss.

Yet...

One day, she received a phone call from her mother.

"_Miyuki! You wouldn't believe this! Me and your father, we're coming home! Back home, to you!" _she said excitedly. She was so excited that her voice broke and Irie could just picture her wiping away tears away from her eyes. Or, maybe she was imagining it. For she was doing the same things that she was thinking of. Fat, warm tears tickled down her face.

_Why?_ She wondered. Why would she be crying over something like this? Something like her parents, who never seen in so long, who left her behind for work, would make her unable to stop crying.

She knew, however, why this was happening to her.

_It was exactly **because** she haven't seen her parents for so long, the parents that she nearly forgot their faces if she didn't look at the pictures of them to remind herself of their faces, that she was crying._

Both her and her mother cried together that night.

She remembered that night so vividly, so vividly that it was like she always re-lived it when she thought about it.

A phone call, late at night.

A maid of the Irie household picked it up and held the receiver close to her ear. She bit her lip to keep it from trembling. She went a girl's room, clutching the hem of her dress tightly. She shook the girl gently to wake her. Deep, purple eyes, heavy from being awoken at this late hour stared at her as her mind began slowly to process what the woman was trying to tell her.

The purple eyes stared at her for a full five seconds, before her brain caught up with her. They widened, drowsiness gone, replaced with terror.

Irie ran downstairs, unlocking the door was towards the front gate and out of her family's territory.

_Her parents... Mother and Father...they-_

Yes, Irie Takeru and Harumi were taking the plan ride home, returning home earlier than planned. "Taking this flight would take them to their beloved daughter whom we haven't seen in years faster" they thought. They felt so bad that they spent so much time on their business that they neglected their only daughter. And finally -finally- they could spend quality time together, as a true family.

That's what they thought.

During the flight, some few towns away from their destination, the plane began to shake. A loud _bang! _following.

Before they knew what was happening, the plane and its passengers it was carrying, spiraled down.

Down and down...

Once it hit the ground, it burst into flames.

_There was no survivors._

Irie Miyuki took the taxi in her haste of the scene.

_Lies! _

_Lies! _

_You said you going to be with me! You said you were coming home to be with me!_

The car sped down the dark streets. The night was so dark, so very dark.

The driver of that taxi, for a moment, one moment took his eyes off the road to adjust the setting of his stereo.

A mistake take can't be taken back.

That car rammed into another, and crashed.

And when Irie woke up from the crash, she found herself in an entirely different place. A place called the _Afterlife._

"-ichi! -yukichi! Miyuki!" Sekine repeated, almost desperate.

Realizing that she wandered off into another world of her own, she smiled sheepishly, weakly. "Huh? Oh, Shiorin. S-sorry. I must've spaced out for a bit. Sorry." Irie apologized twice.

Hisako glared daggers at Ryugo. The brunette knew that Irie didn't just "space out." The words of this man made her remember something that she shouldn't have. Hisako felt that this guy has to go, for the safety of her friends' sake and her own. Something didn't feel right about him.

"Are you okay?" His eyes flashed again with emotion, but his question that was supposed to be of concern was slightly off and Iwasawa felt this.

"I think... you have to leave." His daughter said. It was spoken like a command though. A smirk was forming at the corner of his chapped lips.

"You know what? I think I will." He turned away from the group. Yui growled. "Asami." Ryugo didn't look at her when he said this. "There are some things that I still need to discuss with you." He began walking. "I'll see you again later."

Yui glared at the figure, hailing a black car and being driven away. What's with guy? Fear clunged onto her. Why did she get the feeling that she saw him somewhere?

Irie held a hand to her forehead. "I don't feel so good. I'll... take my leave for today... if that's okay with you." She felt tired. After what happened to today, no wonder. Sekine stayed closely by her best friend's side. "Let's head up and get out bags then." The blonde opened the large door open for Irie, said short "bye" and followed Irie.

"If you don't mind, I'll stick with those two until they get home. I don't want anything bad to happen to them." Hisako said. "Iwasawa."

"Yeah?"

"I have to talk to you later about this."

Iwasawa expected this. "Yeah, I know."

Hisako ran into the building to catch up with Sekine and Irie.

"Yui."

Yui was silent for most of the time. She looked up at her sempai.

"Let's go home for today. I... feel like taking a rest."

The younger guitarist complied to this request obediently.

"Okay..."

* * *

**Phew, finally finished. This chapter was hard to write. I tried to make sure I got this done before the end of the year. Thanks for everyone who kept reading this far~  
**

**Merry Christmas and have a Happy New Year everyone!**


	14. Another One?

The afternoon sunlight streamed into the open window, a breeze would play occasionally play with the gray cotton curtains leaving a slight chill into the white painted room. In the corner of the room sat a certain red haired girl on a wooden chair. A black strap circled around her back and her shoulder, supporting a maple-bodied instrument. The person sitting down shivered for a moment as the cold air blew into the room. Her slender fingers held firmly yet gently on the guitar.

The figure gave a sigh. How many sighs did she make this now?

After the interaction with her father the day before, Iwasawa could feel the tension in her body rising with every thought or anything that would remind her of the man. Her muscles tightened and ached despite doing no activity that usually caused such symptoms. It must have been all the stress that was unearthed yesterday, Iwasawa convinced herself.

She was by herself in the apartment she owned, and was sharing. Her new temporary roommate, who stayed in the extra-unused room next to her own, was out for the rest of the afternoon.

Yui had left early in that Saturday morning. She apparently had a meeting with Hinata. Though Yui said she was meeting the blue haired youth, it was quite obvious what her real reasons were. The faint but noticeable splash of pink on her cheeks, her adorable stuttering when Iwasawa wished her good luck on her "date", and many other of the typical high girl with a crush signs. Iwasawa didn't see this side of her underclassman often, so she could hope that Yui would be having a better time than she was having right now.

The metal strings rang out through the space around her. There was no way she would get anything done now, not with her mind in turmoil. Ever since daybreak, Iwasawa sat in her chair, strumming her guitar nonstop. In this time, she was able to find some good tunes for possible songs she would later compose, but a little bit after Yui left, her inspiration went dry.

Her fingers began to hurt a little, not so much that it was excruciating, but enough to get her to take a break. She carefully set the guitar down and back into its black case. She ran her hand through her hair in frustration.

The soft rings of her cellular phone laying on the table nearby caused her to relax a little. She went over and looked at the caller ID before putting the device put to her ear.

"Hello?" Iwasawa tried with effort to hide her left over irritation. She absentmindedly twirled the music note phone charm around her index finger.

"_Hello?"_ Hisako's voice resounded in her ear. But the playful edge in her voice was slightly off. She seemed to be a bit tired.

"What? Did you need something?"

"_Ah... well..."_ Hisako sounded hesitant. _"You think we can meet up in the park near the shopping district later?"_

Was this about the talk she wanted to give her the other day? Iwasawa checked the circular blue clock hanging on the plain wall. It was around noon. "Yeah, sure. How about now?"

"_If you don't mind."_

"I'm free right now, we can go now if you want."

Hisako agreed, _"Yeah. Okay. Meet you there in a few then. Bye."_

Iwasawa flipped her cell closed. She ruffled her silken red hair as she plodded over to the bathroom.

She straightened out her black and gray plaid skirt, fixed her burgundy hoodie and black wristbands. She studied her appearance briefly before deciding that it was enough.

On the way out the door, she swiftly grabbed the keys and her iPod and locked the apartment shut. Yui had her own set of keys from the landlady, so there wasn't any worry about her trying to get in as long as she had them. Iwasawa checked the door one more time and went down the stairs to meet up with Hisako.

* * *

The wind wafted different scents of the nearby shopping district's variety of food across the block, in spite of the light breeze that day.

Iwasawa had her iPod set on shuffle, with a diverse and lengthy playlist, she never got bored of her songs, so she never had the need to delete or replace any. Her taste in music extended to those of different tongues, but it was still mostly compromised of Japanese. The iPod held Korean, Chinese, and English songs, and even though Iwasawa didn't know the language or what the artist was saying, she liked the vibe the song and entered into her iPod. One day, she figured, she would learn the different language so she would get the full understanding of the songs.

The vocalist tugged on the front of hoodie and adjusted her cherry earphones. The park Hisako requested that they should meet in was just a few minutes away from her apartment. By the time a song was over, she had already stepped foot on the green grounds.

Iwasawa checked the side of the park and took a seat on a bench. Children played merrily on the playground. They ran up and down the stairs, slid down the twisted slides, dirtying themselves in the sandbox.

The scene gave her an assortment of feeling in her chest. The warmth of seeing the children play without a care in the world, filled to the brim with happiness, and the bitterness of not given the chance to have an experience of what they did. In her childhood, she never occupied herself or with others to frolic around on a playground. When school was over, she would have to go home the cramped home she had. On the weekends or break, there was no use of her going alone if all she would do was to stare and envy the kids around her of the life they were living.

"Iwasawa?"

Iwasawa tore away from her view of the play area. Vermillion orbs met in contact with the lead guitarist's silver ones. Hisako's eyes, Iwasawa noted was gray, but not like a drab, lifeless gray. A shiny cloudy type, was the only way Iwasawa could describe it. Much like when the rays of sunlight slicing through the cloudy skies after a rain. Iwasawa told her friend this when they first met. She recalled how flustered the brunette was when she said that to her.

"Hisako. You're here," Iwasawa scooted over to the left to make some room for Hisako. She folded her earphones compactly before putting them in the large pocket in front of her hoodie that also held her iPod.

"Yup. I just got here. What were you doing?"

"I... was thinking."

Hisako made a "mhmm..." sound.

"What about you? You called me out here for something, didn't you?" Iwasawa asked, straight to the point.

"Oh, that," she scratched the back of head, in an almost embarrassed way, "I assumed I told you the other day. Did you forget?"

"No, but you didn't inform of what we were going to talk about," Iwasawa stated blandly.

"Uh, I didn't?" Hisako tugged at the collar of her navy blue short-sleeved shirt. The shirt had long light green crosses running down both sides and along the shoulders. A gold pendant hung at her neck. She had crammed a hand into her the pockets of her black denim shorts. The colorless band held her auburn hair neatly.

She cleared her throat. "So..." she started uneasily, "That guy, yesterday... Was he really your dad?"

Her uncertainty was to be expected. Iwasawa believed that her and her father shared almost no resemblance. The most prominent features were that fact that he had onyx eyes, and short coal hair while she had red hair and eyes. She always thought she got them from her mother's side, as she had a hint of red in her otherwise light brown hair. Like a recessive gene or something.

"Yeah," Iwasawa's response was automatic.

The two wasn't facing each other on the bench. They kept their concentration on the joyous children in front of them. For some reason, it felt like a very sensitive subject. Iwasawa had an arm supported by the arm of the bench, legs crossed. Hisako's body tilted to the side where the opposite arm was at. Her elbow was propped up from the arm and she rested her chin on the other free hand she had out.

"I see..." the brunette exhaled noisily. "But..." a vulpine grin spread across her face. "Iwasawa Asami, was it?" she said in a mischievous way.

Iwasawa whipped her head back to the guitarist, almost startled by her. Her mouth formed a small "o", "Don't... say that..."

Hisako frowned. "I can't call you by your given name?" she said dejectedly.

"It... sounds weird. It doesn't sound normal, I mean. I rather you just call me by my last name."

"Well, it does come off strange. 'Asami' doesn't roll off my tongue too easy. It's like... bizarre," Hisako added quickly at the sight of Iwasawa's raised eyebrow to avoid a misunderstanding, "Not the name in general, but saying as your name...Uh...You know what I mean right?"

Even though she said this, Hisako would be using this information later. She kept it in storage in case she might ever have the need to tease Iwasawa a little. Making Iwasawa feel "weird" was a fun thing. Oh, the look on her face when she said her first name. Priceless! You don't get to see that from Iwasawa very often.

"I think I do," Iwasawa said uncertainly.

"But I was surprised," Hisako folded her arms, "It took me all of last night to remember, but..." A glint of anguish flashed through her cloudy eyes like thunder before a storm, "...I...I've seen him before. Your father."

Ashen eyes stared straight into vermillion when she stated that.

"It was a while back-"

"Hey! Hisako-san, Iwasawa-san!" a voice pieced through discussion.

Ai waved to the two of them from the concrete trail leading up to where they were sitting with Rena in tow. The pair strolled over the band members. Hisako stood up and leaned on the armrest on Iwasawa's side to make room for Rena and Ai.

Ai plopped down on the seat as she puffed out air. Rena carefully sat down while muttering a soft "excuse me."

"What are you guys doing here?" Ai's cheerfulness seemed to break the serious atmosphere that was created earlier.

"We were just talking about things," Iwasawa answered kindly. Rena propped up her clear glasses. Her facial expression suggested that she wanted to know more details, but in a "you-don't have-to-say-anything-if-you-don't-want-to" kind of way. Iwasawa fiddled with the earphones inside her pocket.

"Ai, you know, that man who came to see Iwasawa, yesterday?" Hisako replied for Iwasawa. "It was her dad. You were right."

"Really? I was just guessing though. All right, score one for me!"

"He did? What did he want?" Rena asked politely. Her personality was really different from her friend. They contrasted with each other well.

"Nothing really. Just wanted to have a talk," Iwasawa had to keep herself from bleeding sarcasm into her words. Some talk that was.

"Now that I think of it, you don't live with you parents anymore, huh?" Ai inquired.

Iwasawa had said a few words of her life situation to them but nothing far too into depth, for example, how her parents were or her lonesome childhood. She admitted to living by herself in an apartment, taking up part time jobs, and the recently moving in of Yui into her residency.

"Yeah, I got out of that place as soon as I could."

Rena quirked an eyebrow. "Oh?" She took interest in Iwasawa's word choice, "You didn't like it there?"

"Something like that. My past wasn't exactly full of sparkles and gumdrops," Iwasawa contemplated back on her life.

"I see," curiosity was barely noticeable in Rena's voice. Either she didn't want to pry, didn't really want to learn more about her classmate, or she was good at hiding emotions. "What about you, Hisako-san?"

"Me? I just living with my aunt..."

"Your aunt?"

"Well, she's not really my aunt. We're not related or anything. She let me stay at her place 'til I get my own. I just started to call her my aunt after a while."

"So that was it."

"And we were having a chat about... some important stuff," Hisako included. She wanted to get back on their initial conversation. She looked at Iwasawa, waiting for an answer to her hint. She nudged her gently.

"Uh, yeah," Iwasawa caught on to Hisako was implying, "If you don't mind..."

"Ah! I'm sorry! We should go lea-!" Rena stood up, ready to go. She yanked on the light blue hood of Ai's jacket.

"You don't have to go," Hisako said nonchalantly at Rena. "You could stay and listen if you want," she signaled at the Ai and Rena and urged them to sit back down.

"But-" Ai started, but didn't get the chance to finish.

"No buts," Hisako pointed at the bench, "Sit." The two followed her instructions immediately, "You're not gonna leave in the middle of a conversation. That's rude."

Rena opened her mouth to say something but Hisako lifted her hand up to Rena's face to stop her.

"But it's even ruder to make someone leave for their own selfish reasons," she finished. That did it. It completely made Rena and Ai halt and abandon any act of departing now. But a blanket of doubt and unease was nevertheless clearly evident on their faces.

"Now then, where did I stop...?" Hisako had to think for a moment, "Oh! I just about to begin the story."

Iwasawa nodded in agreement.

"Okay... it was a while back, probably a few years ago, when I-" Hisako glanced at Rena and Ai, "had a tiny accident." She was going to refer to her time of her "death" but with Rena and Ai here, she couldn't say that she died or something. That would cause some confusion and some more explaining, so she had to choose her words with caution to avoid any suspicion. It wasn't a good time to be careless. If she and Iwasawa felt closer to the pair, then maybe they could fill them in on the afterlife, but not now.

Iwasawa ran her hand through her silky red hair. How in the world was her father related to Hisako? She focused on her companion to make sure she didn't miss a detail.

"It was the time long ago when I was still living with my brother-"

"You had a brother?" Ai interrupted. Hisako hushed her.

"Shh! No questions until the end. But, yeah, I had a brother. If he was still here, he would be... 23, maybe?"

"You _had _a brother?" this time Rena asked a question.

"Like I said, no questions 'til the end. I'll get to that part later. But for a better image, I'd say he would look like a male version of me, tall, his hair was a darker shade of mine and the strange fact that he has brown eyes. He also wore the color blue a lot," the Girls Dead Monster lead guitarist went on with her narrative.

* * *

Hisako had an elder brother, Seiji, whom she lived with in a run-down house of theirs. She and her brother were orphans. Their parents died when Hisako was little, so little that she couldn't even remember their faces, not that it matter too much to her anyway.

For the most part, Hisako lived what she deemed to be a normal life. Going to school, playing sports (mostly with her brother), and stuff like that. Seiji was exceptionally close to her sister since they only had each other to depend on. It was during this time that Seiji taught her the basics to guitar with the electric guitar that formally belonged to what they thought was their deceased father.

Up until she was around the age of seven, Seiji, the guardian-like figure of the girl, starting to become absent from the house more than usual. Hisako, at her young innocent age, had an astounding amount of curiosity, and went one night to follow her brother. Of course, this is only natural. If someone you loved was up and leaving at the dead of the night to go somewhere without telling you and didn't come back until it was late afternoon the next day, you would be intrigued and maybe a tad bit interested in what activities they were a part of and their strange behavior.

Humans weren't the best nocturnal creatures on earth, most slept at night, awakening in the day to go forth to do their daily rituals, so Hisako did find her beloved brother to be odd in whatever he was doing at night.

So, Hisako silently followed Seiji, partly because of the secret reason of that she was pretending to be ninja and surprise him later her amazing ninja abilities, and to find out Seiji's sudden disappearances when the darkness had fallen.

He approached a large deserted building in the edge of town. When he entered the door, it was locked shut from the inside, leaving Hisako no choice but to find a new path of entry.

She snuck in the air vents with her "super ninja skills" she had called them, and peered down below through the vents to the floor below her. About 50 to 60 people, she estimated, had gathered in the building. All of which, wore the same particular colored clothing somewhere on their body, whether it was bandana, a scarf, shirt or pants, all were the color of blue. She spotted Seiji wearing a blue bandana tied at his arm, somewhere along the side of the crowd, conversing and having a good time. Few people had tattoos covering themselves head to toe. She watched as the crowd distribute a fine, white powdery substance.

Hisako was glad that at that time she was so pure and innocent, it would have caused her so much more distress and worry to her at that age if she wasn't.

At first it was like a little party, everyone fooling around, goofing off, drinking and laughing. Nothing seemed to be wrong. At first...

Later, a young man appeared, stood on a makeshift stage. Hisako had a hard time hearing because she was having difficultly staying awake. She wasn't used to being awake at this hour. She tried to yawn as soft as possible, rubbing eyes from the mist that came from the yawn, fighting off drowsiness as best she could. Her grogginess caused her vision to blur and her sense of hearing began to sound muffled, so she couldn't remember too detailed.

Feeling out of place and her muscles heavy due to lack of sleep, she had to force herself to stagger back home, to her old creaky bed, to sleep.

In the morning, she would ask Seiji about what she saw last night.

As planned, Hisako asked her sibling.

And some reason unknown to her, he burst in a fit of rage. He frightened her to the very core with what he did.

After that, they became distant. In less than year, this was the time that Seiji had become cold and aloof, barely talking to her sister in addition to the rapid growth of crime and gang violence in the city.

Hisako felt her "normal" life begin to crack. She had lost almost complete relationship with her only known blood sibling and relative, and slowly becoming just like her brother, a detached, unsociable individual without her noticing. Time was spent by herself, wandering the city for a place to rest. With her, the electric guitar of her father followed. To sustain the new lifestyle, Hisako found side jobs that gave a modest amount of money. She took care in where she walked. With the gangs around, the town was being left in shambles. The shabby home was often left deserted by its only residents.

Wandering, and wandering. Alone. Without another being's warmth.

The sidewalk she treaded on repetitively seemed to run forever. She had to continue to walk on the endless path. No going back. She couldn't.

If she did, there would be no one left for her to go home to.

Then years later, the town she lived in had split into two. The north side and the south side of the town became divided, each by the control of gang. It marked the beginning of gang war. It was also approximately the same time that Seiji isolated himself from the outside world entirely. It was like he had gone into hibernation of his active nightlife.

Over time, Hisako paid no heed to her elder sibling subsequent to their falling out. She ignored him like the furry mold festering up in the ceiling of the cramped bathroom. It was there, but its presence wasn't appealing enough to take any awareness to.

By then, Hisako became aware that her brother was a part of the north side gang and to protect herself, she broke off all connections to him entirely expect for the fact that they still lived together, though she never returned home. Once in a blue moon however, her feet would stop by their neighborhood and she would find herself standing at the dirty, tattered welcome mat on their porch. A hand rose to the oxidized doorknob, but never turned it to open. The faltering action would drop short, and away she went, back to her roaming restless life.

The event that finally triggered her life to smash and break into pieces was when she went back home from school.

Maybe... maybe she could try reaching out to Seiji one more time.

She admitted to missing her sibling. She thought that she could try to speak with him again. He lived by himself, not going school, like he's supposed to and that worried Hisako. Did something happen to him?

She grew weary of her current life and wanted to return to her old ones. To retake and hold tightly to the happiness.

Her door to her house was broken, but always made sure to be closed to prevent any cold drafts was left open. Even her shut-in of a brother knew when to close it.

She approached her home with vigilance; an admonition of something terrible welled up in the pit of her stomach. The rotten wood flooring groaned under the weight of her feet. A shiver came down her spine, despite the warm sun. Her brain sensed danger and gears in her mind began to move as she prepared herself.

"Hey, Sei-!" Hisako was about to call for her brother for his thoughtlessness but a good hard blow to the head cut her off. She wasn't expecting a surprise attack and she blanked out into a threatening black abyss.

She awoke with a cold sweat and agonizing headache. Something wet trickled down on to her forehead. She tried to use to her hand to wipe it away but found that one was handcuffed to the rusty file cabinet handle.

"W-what the fuck?" her words came out desperate as she tried to no avail to free herself. It only took a minute before she realized her situation. This place she was captured in was the building where she watched her brother gone to before. The whole place stank; a foul smell blanketed the site. Some damaged windows here and there allowed some sunlight in. It was littered with random objects, for instance, the damned file cabinet she was prisoner to. She figured that the sticky substance on her forehead was blood, dried up blood, from the blow she took earlier.

Waves of despair and confusion wrapped her entire being.

A man, possibly in his early to mid-thirties, with a white lab coat, entered the filthy room. Behind him followed a group of other men, two of which hauling a person without much care. Hisako reckoned they were from the opposite gang of her brother's, considering that their red clothing was the south side's gang signature color.

"H-hisako..." the person breathed, his voice raspy low. The people who held the individual threw them down to the rock hard floor. He coughed, spraying blood up everywhere. His body shook. He was covered his bruises, a black eye on his swelling left eye. The clothes were ripped and torn several spots. In other words, he looked like a mess.

"S-seiji...?"

The man forcefully grabbed a fistful of his hair, as one from the group behind him crouched next to Hisako and gripped her arm so tightly that hurt. Hisako was sure that her arm was crushed by the pressure he was putting on her. The nameless man, whispered something into his captive's ear. Seiji appeared to use a great deal of effort to merely speak. He whimpered frantically to them to release him, and to Hisako's surprise, to release her as well.

The captor refused and let out a hearty laugh, as if he just heard something hilarious. He made a swift signal with his hand. The man next to Hisako pulled out a needle, filled with a strange clear substance. Hisako thrashed about in his firm grip. She had no idea on what was going on and there was no fucking way that guy was going to put some foreign stuff in her. She was already afraid of needles as is.

Despite of her efforts, the man stabbed her harshly in the neck with the point. She screamed loudly.

"No! What the hell are you doing? Stop! STOP!" she could hear Seiji's cries.

"STOP!"

The man holding Hisako let go and she crumpled down to the ground in a daze.

Her body felt numb and it was like it was packed with lead. Her head swirled crazily and from the injection site, an intense burning sensation started to spread. Pain racked her entire body. Blazes of agony and an unbelievable migraine pounded at her mind. The female lay sprawled out on the tiled ground. Her vision grew blurry. Seiji's hollow pleas went into deaf ear. Her consciousness plummeted into the pitch-blackness of a void eating all feeling.

Though, it was strange. As she fell farther and into nothingness, the single thought left in her mind was that...

The first time in a long time that her brother said her name and that was the last.

* * *

"...And would conclude my condensed form of the Hisako Chronicles," the Jazzmaster guitarist ended. She stretched her arms out in front of her, "Been a while since I told anyone that." The only one who knew about her past was, naturally, Iwasawa, and the rest of the band, and main SSS members of the afterlife.

Iwasawa calmly stared at her, as this was old news to her. The end of the story meant that Hisako died by the effects of the lethal drug.

Ai and Rena, on the other hand, had different reactions compared to the vocalist.

Both their jaws were wide open in shock.

_A bug can fly into their mouths, _Hisako mused internally. They obviously by no means had the experience of hearing a life like Hisako's.

"H-h-hisako-san..." Rena's lower lip quivered. "You..." she looked like she was on the verge of tears.

"What's gotten into you?" Hisako waved it off, like it was no big deal. Which it was to her. She long ago moved past this, and wasn't bothered by it anymore. A smile of guarantee spread broadly across her face. The genuine smile evaporated any doubts in the two's mind.

Ai stood up, her back to her classmates. From behind, Iwasawa watched her wipe her face with her turquoise long sleeve, possibly to wipe the mist forming in her eyes. She turned around, a weak smile at her lips. "Hey, when you woke up... what happened to Seiji-san?" she asked softly.

The silver orbs glinted a sense of forlorn, "I was informed later that he...wasn't part of this world anymore. That he isn't here anymore."

Cheerful giggles and boisterous laughter of children was the only audible sound afterward. A long beckoning silence enveloped them.

Rena stared at her feet unnervingly. She was under the impression that she was told a secret that she wasn't supposed to know. She knew Hisako for a while now... but wow. She hadn't foreseen this in her day. They were friends, yeah, but she felt that they weren't close enough to talk about something like this. This seemed much too personal for someone like and Ai should hear. She felt out of place.

The apprehensive atmosphere was getting suffocating. She had to get out.

The unexpected muffled vibration coming form Rena's jacket pocket startled the group. Saved!

"I... have to excuse myself. I have... something to do," Rena once again pulled Ai to her. Ai wobbled on her feet for a moment when her balance was abruptly disturbed.

"H-hey-!"

"I have to go run some errands!" Rena waved farewell hastily, dragging and dumbstruck Ai with her.

The ones left behind stayed in their flabbergasted and confused state from the sudden departure, staring at their backs as they hurried walked away.

"Umm... what?" Hisako broke out of her bewilderment first.

"Uh..." Iwasawa was still at a loss of words.

The brunette cleared her throat to clear the air, "Anyway, I refreshed your memory, right?"

"...Yeah. But I don't see the point in you retelling this to me."

They went back to their conversation prior before the interruption.

"Iwasawa, there's a point to everything I say," Hisako reverted back to the last name basis.

"I seriously doubt you."

"You have some trust issues, I swear."

"And you have a crazy mind."

"Not as a crazy as Yui's or Sekine's. Oh, but Yuri got some creepy things up in her brain. You know she made us fast for a week? A week! If it was possible, I could've died again!"

Laughter rang out between them. It was one of those moments where you did something terrible or stupid and could laugh about it later.

"Hah... hah... You know, honestly, I totally forgot what I wanted to talk to you about," Hisako sat back down on the bench next to her best friend as she clutched her stomach.

Iwasawa's mind had to backtrack to get the gear moving again.

"It was... about... how you... knew my father before you died."

Hisako pursed her lips. "Ah..." she stiffened. "Do you want to know still?" she wanted to make sure.

"If it was the reason why you brought me out here, then yes. If not, then you just made me listen to you life story again when I know it very well."

"Geez, couldn't you say it nicer? I was bearing my soul out to you."

The brunette's features changed and her expression turned serious, "You sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure. I want to know the part he played in your life."

"Okay..." Again she hesitated, "You know that man who led the other guys when Seiji and I were captured?"

"Yeah..." Iwasawa brain's slowly tried to piece together the pieces. The man in the while lab coat...

...

...

...Oh god.

Iwasawa hoped that it wasn't she thought it was.

"I didn't want to say it in front of Ai and Rena but... the man wearing the white coat on... looked an awful lot like your dad. From what I can remember, I can say that I'm almost positive that he was your dad... and," she paused, her bangs covered her face, "the one who may have killed my brother and me."

Damned bastard of father.

Not only did make trouble for her, but Hisako as well. What kind of life did he lead? All she really knew about his job was that he worked in the R&D department of some medical facility.

Looks like another question dropped into the puddle of things she had to ask the cryptic. The drop rippled the surface of her being and she became on edge.

"I don't have any evidence on whether he is on not... but... I want to know. Did he really do that to Seiji and me, or was it someone else?" Hisako's silver eyes filled with resentment, "I don't have anything against you for it, Iwasawa, don't worry about it. I simply need to find this out. I won't feel complete until I know who did that to my brother. We weren't very close as we used to, my brother and I, but I can't seem to let it go."

"...I understand," Iwasawa said those words without giving much thought. Did she really understand? Did Hisako really not hold anything, anything at all, against her? Her father also seemed to know Irie in a way. What about Yui and Sekine?

Her mind jumbled as she tried piecing together empty, partial information.

The brunette stood up, "I'm beat. I'll take my leave for today." Her words matched her actions, "Think I'll head home now."

Iwasawa's eyes followed her movement, "Sure... okay" She stood up as well. Her legs were stiff from sitting too long.

The sun was going to set soon. They had been out here for a long time.

Hisako laughed lightly, but a different from the one they shared earlier. It was lifeless and dry.

"Home... is a place you return to. I don't have such a thing. There's nowhere that I can call _home_," she muttered, so quietly that Iwasawa barely heard her. She sluggishly moved the front of the park, where she flashed Iwasawa a strained smile, before walking away, dragging her feet.

The red head turned to look at the playground. All of the kids had left the park. The swings creaked when the wind picked up. The slides gave off a dull glow in the remaining sunlight. It was an empty sight. Almost sad.


	15. Contact

Iwasawa picked up her blue porcelain cup with her right hand. Her left held partially done music sheets. It was more than third-fourths finished. She just gotten the first verse done and now she was stuck.

She sipped the black liquid in her cup. Her morning wake-up. So very strong. Ah, caffeine and its effects on the body.

Her eyes furrowed at papers. All of the notes are ready to played by the band, but without the lyrics, most of the message that she would be trying to depict would be lost from the song. And a title was very much needed.

For some forsaken reason, she couldn't find the right words for it.

It was on the tip of her tongue! She hated these moments in life.

Yui rubbed her watery eyes after giving a great big yawn as she walked into the room. "What are doing?" she asked, the morning drowsiness still upon her.

"Trying to write some lyrics," she responded. She stood up, "Want some coffee?" She went over to the cabinet and pulled a matching cup to her own.

Yui studied the papers, "Yeah, sure."

"Want some milk or sugar?"

"Sure."

Iwasawa placed the cup down next to Yui's elbow and went to get the said items. She came back to the table, and brought her cup to her lips, "Careful, it's hot."

"Hmm..." she dropped two sugar cubes and poured an ounce of milk in. The white cubes went in the black coffee with a "plop". The color changed from a pitch black to beige. Yui stirred her drink thoughtfully. The spoon clanged with the sides of porcelain.

She passed the sheet music back to her sempai. Her chained wristbands jingled. "Is this your new song- ack!" The scalding coffee burnt her tongue a little. She quickly blew on it to cool it down. The sleepiness scared away by the sudden shock of heat.

"I told you it was hot."

Yui pouted, "I forgot." Steam puffed out for her cup.

"I just told you a minute ago."

"The little details in life are easily forgotten. People usually look at the big picture."

"That's true..." She set her papers to the side for now, "Do you always wear those?" Iwasawa noted the girl's chains. Her tail swung side to side. How it did such a thing, Iwasawa will never know.

Yui brought her wrist to eye level, "When I go outside. Sometimes I forget to put them on when I'm at home."

So Yui wore must have wore them yesterday as well. That reminds her...

"How was your date with Hinata?"

The younger girl's face went crimson as she choked on her drink, "D-d-date? We didn't on a d-date." She fumbled on "date" several times, "We went shopping, ate a little at some place, and saw a movie."

Iwasawa smirked a little. She was aware of how Yui disappeared from the afterlife. She would've never had guessed that Yui's biggest wish was to get married. Hinata had basically proposed to her. Why in the world did Yui try to find the fact they were practically a couple now? Such futile furtiveness. If she was going on dates with someone, she would have no problem telling people about it.

…

…Well, Hisako might a little troubling.

Not like was interested in anybody at the moment either. Dreams come first in her world. Marriage and all that can wait.

Yui still spouting out excuses about how Hinata and herself weren't a couple. A red blush clearly spread out across her face.

"You see... uh..." Yui glanced around the room. "Ah! When did you like your coffee black?" she nearly jumped out of her seat. Her index finger pointed at the red haired girl's drink. She changed the subject in an effort to avoid the matter.

Iwasawa decided to go along, "Always, I suppose." She took another sip.

"That's not good for you, I hear."

"You're right, though there are some benefits to it now, I think," she downed the rest of her beverage pleasurably. The bitterness tingled in her throat. When did she begin to prefer it black? She been drinking the stuff almost everyday now. Every morning started with it but for the rest of the day, water was her best friend. Maybe a cup or two of tea a day. Juice and milk was a something that she would drink rarely, if that was her only choice. And carbonated drinks didn't taste to good to her. Too fizzy. Why was that so? "As long as it won't kill me, I'm fine with it," she motioned to the white coffee maker that she bought a week before at a discounted price from the store she worked part time in, "want an another cup?"

"Yes please. You should put something sweet into yours. It'll taste way better, " she gave Iwasawa her cup gratefully as the red head rose from her chair, "I'll try to remember that." Iwasawa poured equal amounts of coffee into both cups. Sweet, huh? She didn't think she had much of a sweet tooth like the pink haired lass.

"While you were with Hinata, did you go visit your mother?" she asked without turning her head. White steam bellowed up into the air and camouflaged itself with the background.

"Yeah. We did. She should be released soon."

Iwasawa nodded. Yui must've gotten Irie to help pay for her mother's medical bills with her abundance of wealth accumulated from her parents before they left from this world.

Then a thought struck her, "So... when she's released, does that mean that you're going to move back with her?"

Yui wrinkled her nose, "I... don't know yet." Her impish tail hung limply from her bottom, "I want to live with her again. Mother always helped me when I was hurt and couldn't move, so I want to do the same. Repay her for her kindness and generosity for all the years that I burdened her with."

"I... understand." Sensible enough. If Yui needed to go back, then there was no helping it.

"But... I love living here," the fanged girl looked down sadly, "I've gotten so much independence ever since I started living here, and Sempai been so nice to me after what happened. Listening to your songs all the time makes me feel at ease and I can forget everything that been bothering me." Her legs kicked at the nothingness under the table, "So, I don't know what to do."

Iwasawa will miss the noisy mornings that she had been accustomed to if Yui moves out. The accessories that she wore fitted her personality well. Quite the little fiend in the morning if awoken at the wrong time. A mistake that she will never make again.

"Ne," Yui signified the end of that with a single sound. That topic would have to be addressed at a different time then.

"Are you going to play that song at our next live?" she once again studied the papers inches away from her.

Iwasawa put both cups down after the refill as she sat back down, "When's our next live?"

"Next week."

"Next week? When did this happen?"

"I meant if you wanted it to be next week," Yui gingerly touched the hot cup's handle, "I can pull some strings to get a concert going." Her rose eyes glinted with anticipation.

"I don't mind," Iwasawa looked at her new song, "but I don't think I'll playing that song yet. I'll be staying up tonight to practice it. Maybe I can get the right lyrics out then."

"I see. That's why you're drinking all that," Yui stared at her coffee. She watched as the milk blended with the drink, "Can I stay up with you?"

"Of course, you're more than welcome to. I might be up for a while though. Shouldn't you go to bed early today? Tomorrow's a school day," Iwasawa didn't want her be falling asleep in class.

"You too. You go to school tomorrow too," Yui replied.

Iwasawa chuckled, "Yeah, you're right." The coffee cooled down enough for her and she took a sip and swallowed. The taste lingered in her mouth as the liquid slid down her throat. How much would be enough for her to stay up the night? Then again, she was probably using that as an excuse to drink more more.

"Say..."

"Hm?" Iwasawa's hand held her cup halfway back down to the table before stopping short. The polish of the table gleamed softly from the light pouring from the open window next to them. "What?"

"Can... I try that?"

Iwasawa looked at her black addiction. If her father's addiction was alcohol, then the classic roast coffee straight from the drip was hers. She wouldn't want it in any other way, "This?"

"Yeah, that."

Iwasawa put her cup down closer to Yui. Yui rotated it so she could grab the handle. The older girl watched her pick it up. She sniffed it once and barely took a sip.

Yui stuck her tongue out distastefully and grimaced.

"Yuck."

* * *

"Where are you going?" Yui asked.

"Out for a walk," Iwasawa replied simply as she slipped on her shoes. The iPod in her jeans pocket was set on pause for now.

Yui returned from the bathroom after scrubbing the bitterness out of her mouth. She moved next to Iwasawa and copied her. She tied her while shoelaces into a knot.

"You going out too?" Iwasawa brought her iPod out in the open.

"Yeah. There was this thing I wanted to get at a store I passed by yesterday."

"You need money?"

Yui shook her head, "I got enough. I waited until today to get it since it'll be on sale." She took out her pink wallet and counted. Almost everything she owned was pink, "I really want that shirt. I'll be back later. Think I'll go 'round the shopping district for a bit too." She placed a hand on the doorknob, clicked her heels together and saluted, "See ya!" and she raced out of the door, waving a quick hello and goodbye to the landlady who was sweeping with a broom outside.

Iwasawa locked her door and greeted the lady. The woman's wrinkles deepened when she smiled. She left in the opposite way Yui dashed off to.

She passed by the park, recounting the events of yesterday. She would have to talk to Hisako later today.

The scene was similar to yesterday, the children back on the playground.

She went on without a second thought. She really needed to clear up the issues with her father soon. The past really does come back to haunt you later.

The vocalist strolled on through the sea of countless faces. Sunday was a busy day. Many people were outside their homes and out and about doing whatever they were doing, whether it was shopping or hanging with friends.

A man with worn out clothes, ragged and several patches of differing textures and cloths covering what was supposed to be holes, moved his bow elegantly out on the sidewalk. His eyes were closed, only paying attention to his music. His movement was mesmerizing. The strings of his huge cello produced a mellow sound. A slow, relaxing sound. He sat on a wooden crate as his stool, the black case of the woodwind instrument lay out flat and open. Coins of various amounts and dollars were strewn inside the case.

Iwasawa dropped her spare change and a 1000-yen dollar into the heavy case. He opened his tired eyes half way and uttered a thank you. Iwasawa gave a smile, which he returned. He refocused on his classical song with a rekindled light in his eyes and looked away.

The stranger reminded her of the days when she did the same thing. She wasn't there for money, but to get people to listen to her. To make her presence known. The man might have been doing the same, with a little more expectations.

Iwasawa stopped at a bookstore, peering through the glass. The cafe inside stretched to the outside. Circular tables covered by a parasol, which was meant for the blistering heat of summer, was instead being used as shade for the warm sun. Chairs in threes sat next to each other. It wouldn't a bad time to take a rest.

She pulled out a chair and sat down. Lowering the volume of the music from her earphones, she allowed herself to sit back and enjoy the tranquility around her in hopes of some form of lyrics for her nameless song to come to her.

In the midst of her song, her could hear snippets of conversations around her. She didn't eavesdrop however. It's wasn't good to listen to other people's privacy and she didn't want to. What good would having someone that she didn't even know's personal life will bring to her? Whether it was an obnoxious young teen or a disconcerted adult, when there was a very high chance that she will never see them again or remember their faces.

Her gaze flew across the street, stopping at the library in front of her. Strange that a bookstore was directly in front of a library. Wouldn't that cause for much unneeded discreet competition.

A girl, shorter than her, stood by her lonesome self, stood staring at her wristwatch. A picnic hat covered the top of her silver hair. She wore a sundress and a denim short sleeve jacket. A white tote bag was in her hand. A ruby teardrop shaped necklace was hung around her neck. Her skin was pale, but not of the sickly kind. _It must be naturally that color. _Iwasawa thought.

She looked up her watch. Her amber eyes made brief contact with Iwasawa's vermillion ones as they did.

_...Oh? Wasn't that...?_

The girl turned to the side.

A young man, orange haired, was running up to her, calling for her. Iwasawa couldn't make out what he was saying due to her earphones and the distance they were separated by, nor could she read his lips, but they formed three syllables.

He had black casual slacks, held at his waist by a brown leather belt. A green jacket with straps at the ends of his short sleeves and around the collar of his neck. A white v-neck tee showed a little of his collarbone and had a blue flat sphere necklace, the opposite color of the girl's necklace. A black backpack finished it off.

He was soon at her side. They appeared to know each other. They conversed idly, most likely to greet each other, and walked to the nearest traffic light ready to cross to her side of street when the light turned green.

A warm feeling began to rise in her chest as the familiar faces approached.

In no time at all, the two arrived at the cafe she was outside.

Iwasawa removed her earphones, "Yo." She gave them a casual greeting.

The male looked at her for a second, his mind gearing into action. Then his eyes widened at the realization, "You're... Iwasawa!"

The girl tugged at the hem of his jacket. "Who?" she asked. Her head tilted to the side inquisitively.

He gave a wide smile, "Iwasawa! The former lead singer for that band. Do you remember?" She shook her head.

"Current singer. And it's to be expected. She couldn't have memorized all the names who attended that school," Iwasawa said. "I'm Iwasawa Asami. Nice to meet you," a small smile made its way to her face. "Your name?" she asked, despite being fully aware of her name. She wanted to her to introduced herself, not as her former enemy, but a possible friend.

"Tachibana."

"And your given name?"

"Kanade... Tachibana Kanade." her voice was small with a hint of shyness.

"Come to think of it, I haven't told you my full name yet," the male held out his hand, "Otonashi Yuzuru." Iwasawa slid her hand into his. His hand tightened around her's firmly as they shook hands.

Kanade motioned to the inside of the café, "I'm going to get a drink. Yuzuru, do you want anything?"

"I'll get a latte."

Kanade looked at Iwasawa. She shook her head, not wanting anything. She had enough coffee for today. Kanade nodded in compliance and sauntered to the entrance. With ease, she pulled on the door handle to get the door to open. Iwasawa and Otonashi watched her enter and head to the counter through the glass. He pulled a chair out for himself.

Iwasawa stopped her music altogether, "How's it been? You two seem to be hitting it off quite nicely."

A hint of a blush was barely visible on Otonashi's face. He scratched the tip of his nose in embarrassment, "We... are uh-... dating."

"When did this happen?"

"While we back in the SSS. After what happened with Naoi."

"Naoi?" She heard a few things about him from the other members of the band.

"He was the Student Council President temporary after Kanade was fired from her position."

That's right. Yuri chose some people to help with distractions, while they switched fake tests with Kanade's. Iwasawa remembered hearing something like that from Yui.

She thought it was kinda sad that none of the SSS members except maybe Yuri, didn't know their own enemy's name. She knew it after a while. Kanade was even the student council president. Wouldn't they figure it out since she was on a high, not to mention- important position at the school?

"I thought that it would be you and Yuri."

"Me and Yuri?" he repeated in bewilderment, "What makes you say that?"

She shrugged her shoulders, "Don't know. I just had a feeling. You two looked close."

Kanade's humming cut interjected them as she walked toward them. She handed Otonashi his latte, folded her dress underneath her and sat in the chair between her and Otonashi.

"You're still humming that, Kanade?" Otonashi asked.

"Eh?" she sounded surprised, "I was?"

Iwasawa crossed her legs, "That was _My Song_."

"You remember Yuri telling you right?" he added, "It was Iwasawa's last song that she sang in the afterlife. I was surprised you still knew the song."

"That's because it is a good song."

Iwasawa thanked her for the compliment, "To think that an angel would remember me. I'm grateful for your praise."

"...But I'm not an angel."

The vocalist gave a soft chuckle, "Yeah, you're right." If she had wings then she'll look like one. Something about her screamed "Tenshi". Iwasawa thought it was the way that battlefront always addressed her like that. Not Kanade or President, but "Tenshi" An invincible, near emotionless angel whose very existence was to counter the SSS and their ambition to fight with God. "Rebels against the god" indeed.

The angel however, turned out to be human. When Yuri found that out, she must have freaked that they were no closer in contacting God.

"Have you met with Yuri and anyone?" Otonashi inclined to the red head.

"No, not yet. I met TK and Hinata, but I think Hisako met with Fujimaki and Oyama a while back."

"Hisako? So she's here too? Along with the rest of the band?"

"Yeah. And Yui too. Just yesterday, she went out with Hinata."

He glanced at Kanade, "Hinata found her then. That's fantastic."

"Yuzuru," the angel clasped her water bottle with both her hands to her chest. The tote bag dangled from her elbow.

"Okay," he stood, "Sorry to leave in such a rush. We have to going somewhere."

"It's fine. I'm sorry to be obtrusive to your-" Iwasawa cleared her throat. "-time together."

Otonashi laughed meekly at the comment, Kanade being indifferent to it.

"Wait. You have a cell phone right?" the vocalist of the rock band asked.

Otonashi blinked. "Oh," he pulled out a slim orange flip phone out of his jacket pocket, "Here. I almost forgot to ask for your number. Good thing you didn't."

"Yui said something about having a concert later this week," Iwasawa tapped her number into the phone, "Thought you would want to go."

Kanade beamed, "Can we go?"

"That's why I'm giving this guy here my number. I'll call to tell you the details when I get them," she handed him back his device, "I'm be expecting you there. And everybody else."

"We'll be there. I did tell Hisako that I'll be a fan again," he gave a thumbs up and grabbed his latte, "We'll see you there."

"Yeah. See ya."

Iwasawa watched the couple walk past her.

Their hands intertwined furtively together.

* * *

The rhythm guitarist returned to her complex. She wasn't tired at all, but a meeting with friend and a new one sparked a verse or two that she had to write down before it escaped from her.

"Sempai!"

Yui ran to her from behind. She panted, a drop of sweat streamed down her face.

"You're back already?"

"You are, too," the fanged girl held up her red shopping bag in triumph. "Wasn't hard. Had to push my way into the store and-" she looked away briefly, "-did some stuff. But, I got what I wanted."

Stuff? What stuff?

"Up to trouble again I see."

They both walked to the apartment door entrance, with Yui in protest.

The silver keys jangled as the slid into the door slot. The sound of metal against metal and then the "click" of the lock. Iwasawa opened the door, allowing her kouhai to enter first.

"Hey, welcome back."

Iwasawa opened her mouth to reply back, but...

"I'm ba-" Yui had beaten her to it and stopped at the realization that someone other than herself and Iwasawa was inside their residency.

"Finally, you guys are back," Sekine popped out of the pile of blankets on the couch. Irie appeared corridor, drying her hands with a handkerchief, "I used your restroom if you don't mind." She took on the empty spot of the couch that wasn't occupied by Sekine.

And Hisako strolled out of the kitchen with a juice box. She smiled at Iwasawa and Yui, "Yo."

Iwasawa felt her eyebrow twitch. "How did you get in here?"

All three of them took something shiny out of their pockets in unison and at the same time said:

"Keys," like it was the simplest thing in the world.

Iwasawa took a deep breathe, "Where did you get the keys? Yui only has the spare one."

Irie covered her feet with the blue blankets, "We went to the landlady, of course." Sekine nodded as he flipped the television channel with the remote, "She gave us an extra key to your apartment after we told her we were all friends."

Iwasawa had to resist the urge to facepalm right then and there.

Dammit landlady!

You can't be giving out her apartment keys to everyone who says that they're her friend.

"I did the same thing. She's a nice lady," Yui commented as she sat down between the drummer and the bassist, "So what are watching?"

"Baseball."

The red head was left awestruck. She forgotten that the people that she was always around were idiots. Idiots that could now break into her apartment at any time of day or night.

"Hey, Iwasawa, you got some snacks or something?" the lead guitarist asked. She slurped the juice of the box through the clear straw. The events of the yesterday were left unsaid.

"Woah, a home-run!" the blond could heard along with Irie and Yui's cheers.

Iwasawa walked into the cramped kitchen.

She needed some coffee. Some really strong coffee.

* * *

**Alright, now.**

**The scene with Kanade and Otonashi was surprisingly hard to write. Hope I didn't make them seem to much OOC.**

**So, for my next story I plan to write a drabble/ficlet thing soon. And I am taking requests now. I could use some ideas for it. If you want me to write something speak up now or forever hold your peace!**

**Or not. All up to you. **

**Anybody? Anything? At all?**


	16. Pocky

**Ah, this chapter is really late. Before I let you read this chapter however, there's something I have to make clear first about this story.**

**To answer any questions about how Otonashi and Kanade happened to be in this world, keep in mind that this story is AU. A slight one at that. It has some canon in it (as you can see from my fail attempts to make it more like canon), but doesn't directly follow the real storyline. For example, in the _AB! _series, anime and light novel, all the characters are dead and passed on to be reincarnated or whatnot. In my story, all the characters from the series didn't actually die, but was in a coma, living a dream that they were dead and in the afterlife. **

**Also, my story is based on the theory used by fans and spectators about the "conspiracies"**** within the show, before it was hard proof that they were in the afterlife. In the beginning, Kanade's _Guard Skills _and the _NPCs _made it seem that Yuri and the others were in a video game. My story is based on the theory that I said above, that the characters are in a coma and aren't truly dead.**

**As for having Otonashi and Kanade somehow being in here, this goes into the fact that I based on the early conspiracies. I may decide to write what may have happened to Otonashi and Kanade to allow them to exist in the world the GDM members are living in to explain all this in Through the Days. **

**And really. I can't make a story that has every other character from _AB! _and not have those two left out. I can't imagine it without the two main characters, so please excuse my selfishness.  
**

* * *

Iwasawa tilted her head as she blinked. Her cup of brewed coffee cooled down too much. She'll have to reheat it later. With a flip of her cell phone, she glanced at the time before shutting it momentarily. It was a little after one in the afternoon. She closed her eyes tightly for a moment before opening them again at the cheers of her companions in the other room. Almost an hour passed since their unexpected arrival. Thoughts of getting new security drifted into her head as her wooden chair screeched noisily against the floor and she went to her friends.

"Oh, Iwasawa," Hisako looked around her shoulder to greet her. "You came to join us?" she pointed to the flat screen television. The baseball game was still on. The score hadn't changed from last she saw.

"Yeah." She took a seat next to her friend. Yui and Sekine preoccupied the couch to the left of them with visible excitement. Irie slept peacefully on the other side of the couch where Yui and Sekine huddled together in the mass of blankets. Hisako made a face, careful to hide her growing boredom. Iwasawa was probably the only one who noticed. Hisako was her best friend after all.

Hisako stood up, walking around the room to the door. "Alright, I'm going out to the store, anyone need anything?" She already turned heel, ready to leave at any moment. Her index finger twirled the clear straw of her juice box.

"Ah, wait," Iwasawa spoke up. She quickly jotted in a blank page of the notebook at the table in front of her and tore it out hastily. "Here, take this." She flapped it in the air.

"This is?"

"Can't you tell? It's a list. A grocery list."

The brunette blinked. "Why are you giving this to me?" She folded the note once.

"'Cause you offered to go to the store. I need someone to go get some stuff for me. I'm running out of

food to eat in the fridge," she replied flatly.

"I can see that," Hisako frowned as she side-glanced back at the appliance, recalling the near-barren contents. "Do I really have to do it?"

"I'll give you the money for everything, don't worry," Iwasawa said defensively.

Hisako raised her hands in defeat, "Okay, fine. I'll do it. But only if I get some pocket money for myself."

Iwasawa shrugged at the suggestion and pulled out her wallet from her jeans back pocket. She pulled out the cash needed for the payment and held it out. "Take it." She leaned all the way back into the leather couch. Hisako took it with a smirk.

"Thanks for the allowance, mother," she said with a wink. "Anyone else?" She turned to the two who were still watching the game.

Yui tiredly looked at her sempai. She looked back and forth from the television and the girl, making a decision. Finally, she lifted herself from the couch slowly and stretched. "I'll go."

Sekine pressed the power button on the remote. The TV screen switched off in an instant. She curled up closer inside the blanket. Blond hair swayed left and right as she shook her head. "I don't wanna go. Just go get me some Pocky or something." She placed on the remote on the table. She shivered at the slight change of temperature and hastily retreated back under the covers.

"Pocky? What kind?" The fanged girl quickly scanned the grocery list from Hisako's hand, looking up a moment after reading through it.

"Whatever. Anything works. They all taste good."

"Then..." Yui fingered the note, "Wanna try Men's Pocky?"

Hisako nearly did a spit-take from her half-empty box. "M-men's Pocky?" She spluttered in between coughs.

Yui nodded gleefully, "Yeah, they have that now. Or they have for a while. I don't really know."

"They made Pocky for men?" Iwasawa asked. So what did that make the rest of the flavors? 'Women' flavors?' Too feminine for guys to eat so they made a new kind for men? Because thin stocks of biscuits covered in a pink strawberry coating is too girly. A flash of the male SSS members imitating the Pocky commercial flashed through her mind.

She shivered.

"Yeah, I guess."

"...And you tried that?"

Yui's lips curved slightly into a frown. "Is that bad?"

"Uh, no... I was just wondering." It was called Men's Pocky for a reason, right? The store must have run out if Yui ate them. But there isn't really a law on what kind of food you can buy in Japan, even if it says that it's for the other gender.

"It's not that bad. Kinda bitter, but after a few sticks you get used to it. It's dark chocolate, if I remember correctly." Yui's white cotton socks glided along the floor, stopping a meter away from the door, hand outstretched for the metal doorknob. Her feet slipped into her shoes without much thought. "So? Want some or not?" She spun on her heel. Hisako crushed the empty juice box with her hand and shot it cleanly into the garbage can a few feet away from her.

Sekine brushed her golden locks with her fingers carefully. Her brows furrowed in thought. "Men's Pocky, huh..." She snapped her fingers cheerfully and gave Yui a thumbs up when she reached a decision. "Yeah! Go for it! To hell with boring chocolate!"

"Okay, captain!" The young vocalist saluted and shuffled out of the apartment.

"But uh, get me a strawberry one, just in case, 'kay Hisako?" Sekine said it loud enough for the brunette to hear as she slipped on her tennis shoes. "I'll give you a box of Men's Pocky in return."

"Nah, I don't want, keep it," she replied. She opened the door a fraction before turning back at Sekine. "...Sir."

"Shuddup!" A pillow was thrown at the door, missing the brunette by a hair. The blond bristled and fluffed up another pillow at her side stolen from Iwasawa's room and the closet where the futon was kept.

"Iwasawa." Sekine pulled her knees to her chest, her body still enveloped in layers of cotton material. "When's that concert thing?" she asked stiffly, trying to make a futz. Irie fidgeted on the opposite side of the couch, slightly kicking her feet as she rolled around, softly breathing in and out.

"Yui said sometime during the week," Iwasawa kicked off her slippers and crossed her legs, going through her sheet music again. "This time, we're not doing any of those guerrilla lives like before."

"I liked the guerrilla lives. We should do something like that instead. Gives it some excitement, don't you think?

The red head looked up from her music, "But we're not in the same place as we were before. In this world, there's such a thing as 'police' and 'jail'. As I much as I love going out and doing concerts, I'm not interested in getting a criminal record." She tapped the papers against her thigh, straightening them out and extended them outward, "Take this."

"This is the new music?" An arm reached out from the soft light blue mass.

"Yeah."

Her azure eyes darted up and down the pages, flipping through them quickly. "Not bad..." she lightly hummed the tune, trying to get the rhythm. "So, I have a week to learn this?" she asked in between the hums.

"If you can. If you can't, then we play the other ones." Iwasawa reviewed her own guitar music. The lead guitarist would have to pick up her's when she came back from the trip with Yui. She began to wonder about making a part for Yui to play. She would have to ask the younger girl as well.

"I can do it. You underestimate me too much," Sekine gave a wry grin. "Watch. In two days, I'll this have down. Just watch me. Wanna bet I can?" Her eyes sparkled like sapphires, brimming with contained excitement.

"No. I'm broke. Gave the money to Hisako and Yui. I just hope they don't buy anything stupid." Last time it as a giant stuffed pink bunny with a red eye-patch that Yui now kept in her room. If something like that happens again, the one percent thread of trust that Iwasawa had left in them with dealing with money would diminish. Where did they get that anyway? It was like something you can win from a carnival, and they managed to get it from wherever they got from and back in less than thirty minutes. With no leftover change.

The blonde's eyes dulled a shade darker, still a bit lighter than her original color to a deep cerulean. She kicked the covers and threw them aside, falling on Irie. The drummer stirred in her sleep, mumbling something incoherent and fell silent. Sekine rubbed her socks on the carpet and flopped down next to Iwasawa's side. The keys' jingle deaden in Sekine's pocket. "Got a nice place here. It looks kinda like my third house."

Third house? No, wait.

By "third house", Sekine must have meant the third house she lived in the past.

The bassist was an orphan. Abandoned as a young child and left to fend for herself. Unlike Hisako, Sekine didn't have any sibling to rely on. For most of her life, she stayed in an orphanage.

Foster homes became a bother to her. In total, she had been and lived in about eleven different homes, with different people and in different locations. In a way, she had been all over Japan, only to ultimately end up at the orphanage after a matter of time.

Sekine didn't consider her self as a problem child. She acted the way she was told to behave by the adults and rarely got into trouble. Problems just kept coming up and she had to be returned to the lost-and-found box of a shelter.

Her birth parents died when she was six. She long forgotten already how her mother and father kicked the bucket and left the world. The memories of her being together with her parents were blurred and practically gone from her mind.

Out of the eleven homes, she could only remember about half of them.

The first house wasn't so bad. The family she was in had no children and therefore looking for a child to adopt. Her foster father was a schoolteacher, commuting from the city they lived in to the one next to it. Her mother was, unfortunately, jobless. Unemployed and not working, she stayed home with Sekine, playing games with her and teaching her basic education.

For the next twelve months, Sekine was home-schooled. But being unemployed takes a gradual toll on a family, especially one with less income needed to feed three mouths.

By the time a year passed, Sekine was back at the shelter where she came from. Her foster father could no longer support all of them and had to cut back. Cut back on food. With not enough food, the new family soon gave up the blonde.

The second house was okay. Unlike the other family, they had many other children. Sekine got along with them, didn't get too close to them, but was able to hold a conversation with them for a while.

However, due to the big number of family members already, the parents were not looking for any more to add to their family.

Sekine went back to the shelter eight months later.

House number three was resident to a single mother with two of her own kids. The mother was an accountant, meaning she was out working often. Her two daughters were crappy to her.

They were misanthropic, stiff, arrogant, antisocial and so many other words that it would take too long to list. Sekine didn't like the girls at all to say the least.

And the mother she had to call "mom", was never home. If she was, it was to sleep. Coming home tired and grouchy, paying little to no attention to her children. That could had been why the two girls were always so bitchy to her.

School was no different.

It was horrendous, just like the house. Sekine was secluded from her classmates from the lies and rumors of her new "siblings".

Six months was all that Sekine could take. She purposely got into a fight with the ill-tempered woman as soon as she walked through the door one late evening. To her relief, she was went back to an orphanage later that week, something she actually prayed to happen.

The next dwelling was the shortest. Her foster father was waiter that volunteered occasionally at her orphanage. He was a waiter, and apparently a bad one at that. Most of his paychecks were to cover the damages on the plates he contiguously broke. Needless to say, the four months she lived there was like in poverty. Nothing much to eat, few changes of clothes, and not much extra money laying around buy whatever she wanted.

Her time there was too short to build a relationship with the newest "father" so there wasn't much to add there.

Following that, she was moved in another homestead miles away from the waiter's home. A two-story abode housing and a part-time mother with a newborn. The father of the baby was out on business trips often. Promptly after arriving at the domicile, he was gone. The woman was either out at work or tending to the infant. Sekine was pushed out to the side, getting recognition only as they ate together at the table in silence or the sporadic nights that the mother would find the time to sit on down on Sekine's bedside to chat a few minutes.

It was only a matter of time that she returned to an orphanage once more.

What misfortune could the blond must have went through. Constantly leaping from one home to another, staying briefly at the asylum for the stray children and teens in between.

By the third house, she began to feel discouraged in finding a permanent dwelling with her guardians.

At the fifth house, she lost her entire hope.

If all there was in life was to switch between family-to-family, with no rest, without assurance of having a true loved one, then the only thing left to do is wait.

Wait for death to come pick her up by the thin thread of life, choking her by the neck to stop the rough drags that brought her to places that she hated was disliked by and was ignored by.

If that were to happen, then this endless cycle—this series of forcefully being shoved into strangers' lives and back to the starting point of where everything would begin again— death wouldn't seem to bad.

In a way, it could liberate her from these binding chains and set her free.

So the next people who took her under their wing, Sekine didn't bother getting too close them. Soon, she would go to some other place, then there was no purpose to making friendly connections to people that she will never see again.

An elderly couple adopted Sekine when she was twelve.

It was the best years of her young life.

The retired old man and aged woman were the first to ever consider to actually care and love the girl.

Sekine had taken her first slice of happiness and warmth and savored it.

Her and her new "grandparents" lived in a small house. Small, but cozy. Just enough to accommodate three people.

Thanks to her grandparents, school was truly enjoyable. A month with them gave her back her original, playful personality. The one that she could faintly recall having when her birth parents were still alive.

She made friends at school and around her neighborhood, a feat that either wasn't attainable or wasn't given a chance to make from her previous home.

Her grandfather was a bassist in a band back in high school. This skill that he had was passed on to Sekine.

He taught her how to play bass, read music notation, technique, and terms in music.

Those glorious days were something she cherished to her very bottom of her soul.

Yet, what happened to those days?

Everything was taken away from her again. But for whatever reason why?

Divide retribution for finding love? A family? Was she born with sin so large that it weighed crushingly on her shoulders, preventing any shred of happiness from coming into her grasp?

She thought so when that day tainted in gray and a mild black, arrived.

Sekine was walking home from school, parting with her friends halfway when she saw the sky. The cobalt sky blanketed in a fog of raising pearly lead, barely livid and pallid. Bare hints of the azure pricking through the haze.

Her eyes followed the originating stream of thickening dark gray to a familiar location. Her legs started up on auto, thrusting her body forward. She ran desperately to the site.

She finally stopped, panting heavily. Her school bag dropped carelessly on the asphalt street when she looked at her house.

Red and orange flames engulfed her home, eating away at everything around it. Tips of the holocaust teased the rooftops of the neighboring houses. The crimson fire truck was stationed outside of her home.

A shrill shriek echoed from the upraising; A sound that roughly engraved itself into girl's mind. The voice that brought the end to her peaceful dream.

"Grandpa! Grandma!" she screeched, painfully screaming out their names. The smoke was making her mouth dry, throat turning raw. She lunged forward but a firm arm snaked around her waist, holding her back.

"Stop! What are doing?" the fireman pulled her backwards.

"M-my grandfather, grandmother..! They're still there! I heard them!" Tears overflowing from its fountain.

He talked into the hand-held radio and several others like himself surrounded the door entrance, but only to turn back, running away from the fireball explosion that incinerated the building in an instant.

"GRANDPA! GRANDMA!"

That was the last she ever saw of the elderly couple.

Shortly after the incident, which was deemed as a gas-leak fire, Sekine was moved into a new home, miles away from her old one.

House eleven was with parents that sold their souls to a medicinal company to feed their greed for money.

As one could imagine, it wasn't the best place to live. It was one of the worst. Constantly under surveillance, following strict rules with no space to stretch your legs, clipping the wings from the shoulder. Flightless, without escape. Confined to the prison for the time that wasn't occupied by school.

Parents under the rule of a medicinal company brings your face down into the dirt even lower; into a ditch of blackness below the earth.

Sekine was subjected into experiments, for what they called "drug testing" for various ailments. The human body is full of chemical reactions that provide the homeostasis for living. Foreign chemicals have no place in the body except for treating disease or illness.

Exposed to continuous testing brings eventual, if not immediate, effects to a human's well-being.

Sekine laid on the bed, muscles tense and numb to any feeling. Her mind blurred over. She inhaled and exhaled excruciatingly.

Heavy eyelids fell slowly as she struggled to keep awake, but in vain.

She closed her eyes and blacked out.

When she awoke, she found herself in a new world.

"Iwasawa?" The blond poked the vocalist's cheek. She sat from the black leather armrest. Her cerulean eyes peering into furrowed cinnabar spheres.

Iwasawa's head snapped up from her reverie. She shook her head, forcing her mind to refocus on the present. She must have spaced out for a while.

"What is it, Sekine?"

"Nothing, but you kind looked out of it. You okay?" She blew a stray lock of mussed flaxen strands from her face, tickling her nose.

Iwasawa gave a reassuring smile. "Yeah, don't worry about it. I was just... thinking about the concert."

Sekine's face lightened up, "It's going to be a lot of work planning out the whole thing by next week. Like the lighting, the equipment, the music. You sure got your hands full with this one."

"Yui's got her hands full. The bulk of our time we will spent on practice. Before, Yuri already planned out the schematics and details of our lives."

"Oh yeah, that's right," Sekine hopped off from the chair's armrest and went back to her side of the couch, covering herself back under the sheets. Irie moved an arm under her head. "We're going to see everyone again right?"

"Everyone..." Vermillion orbs roamed to a familiar sight of dancing musical notes on the table, "If God allows us to see everyone again, then we will."

"We're back!" Yui burst into the apartment, almost throwing the plastic bags into the air. If it weren't for the hands holding them, they would've flown to the other side of the complex, breaking the glass of a window and dropping down back to ground level. Hisako had the tip of her shoe between the door and the frame. She kicked the down open, setting the bags down so she could shut the door.

"Geez, Yui. Be more careful, will ya?" Picking up the bags, she went straight for the kitchen. "Oi, where you want these?" Yui followed the lead guitarist.

"On the table., Iwasawa called out. The sound of the crinkling bag was her response. She could hear Hisako rustling through the grocery bag.

"Hey, Sekine," the brunette returned with a teal rectangular box directed to the blonde's face, "Think fast."

"Wh—gack!" the box hit its mark at the center of her forehead. It slid down her face and landed in her lap. Sekine rubbed her forehead, "What's wrong with you? Can't you walk over and hand it to me like a normal person, stupid Hisako?"

"I'm sorry, but normal people are boring. I refuse to be one of them. There's no fun in that," a puckish smile formed at her lips, "Be grateful I got your Pocky." The carbonated bottled drink fizzed when the cap was twisted open. "Horrible reflexes, horrible," she mumbled in between gulps.

Sekine scowled at her as she ripped the top of the box, "Geez, why thank you, oh-almighty-one."

Irie sat up from the side of the couch, rubbing her eyes.

"You guys," she yawned, "are loud."

"Oh? Looks like the princess has awoken from her dream. How was Wonderland, my lady?" Sekine bit into a stick of the bitter dark chocolate.

Irie kicked her in the stomach, "Idiot."

"H-hey, whoa. Is today the day that everyone hates me or something? All of you are so violent."

"Enjoying that Men's Pocky, monsieur?" Yui came into the room holding strawberry Pocky, nibbling at the frosted biscuit stick.

"Surprisingly, yes, my fellow gent. But hold the boat," Sekine turned to Hisako, "where's my strawberry Pocky?"

The brunette shrugged carelessly, "I left it in one of the bags in the kitchen." She capped the bottle, "It should be in one—oh, no, scratch that. It should be in most of them."

Iwasawa raised an eyebrow, "Why most of them?"

Hisako stared at the label of the bottle, "'Cause we used most of the money you gave us on Pocky."

"What about the list I gave you?"

"Such a sight it was!" Hisako said theatrically, surprising the red head, "You see, both Yui and I were right at the store when it happened! This girl, perhaps around the age of ten cradling a paper bag, suddenly grabbed Yui's hand-" Yui nodded furiously in agreement, "-and took off! She dragged the poor Yui-" Hisako shook her head sadly," -down the street. I ran after them, you see. I caught up to them when they pitifully ran out of breath a block away. She confessed in running away from a man selling taiyaki who frightened her when he scared away a cat. Minutes later, she found us."

"We lugged the girl back to the taiyaki man, apologized and parted. We were forced to give up some of the money of which you presented to us to pay him back for the girl. In the end, we were only able to get the Pocky and some snacks. 'Cause, boy, running is tiring," Yui finished.

"Lies. You bought all that Pocky so you can take as much as you want home with you tonight when you leave."

Yui sighed in defeat, "You got us. But realize this. We both know how much Iwasawa-sempai loves Pocky. Out of the kindness of our hearts, you wanted to give you all these treats so that we may all delight in their deliciousness."

"Wrong. I don't want a shelf full of Pocky," Iwasawa replied dryly. "You guys owe me, plus ten percent interest."

"Sekine!" Yui jabbed an accusing finger at the blonde, "You said that if we said that story, she'll believe us!"

"Idiot!" Sekine threw the teal box that fell pathetically to the floor. "You forgot the part that the girl forgot her wallet! No wonder Iwasawa didn't believe you!" she confuted.

"Hisako, can you get me a box?" Irie asked suddenly.

"Will do," Hisako went into the kitchen and returned with the pink biscuit box, "catch."

Irie caught the toss. "Thanks."

"What's this? What is this completely different treatment that Miyukichi gets compared to me?" Sekine began to oppugn.

Hisako took a biscuit stick from Yui, "Iwasawa, got a minute? I have something I want to speak to you about."

"What is it?"

"Hey! Hisako! Don't ignore me!"

"Can we talk about it outside?" Hisako unlatched the door. Iwasawa stood up and smoothed out her clothes. "Irie. Watch these two while I'm gone. Keep an eye on the place, too." Iwasawa said. "I don't want to see my apartment in ruins when I get back."

"A-ah! Okay!"

"Why does Miyukichi have to watch us? I-" Iwasawa shut the door before she could hear any more. She followed Hisako's lead out of the complex.

Hisako went down the steel stairs, "Let's take a walk. The breeze feels nice."

"..." The clangs of the footsteps echoed. Iwasawa took her place next to the lead guitarist's side and they began to walk.

Near the end of the block, Hisako stopped a few paces away from the vocalist's back.

"Hisako?"

She looked down at the cement, watching the trail of ants marching around the large crack in the ground, "I... wanted to apologize 'bout yesterday."

Iwasawa turned her head to the playground across the street, the one that she was at yesterday. Empty once more. "What's there to apologize for?"

"Remembering what happened in the past made me... lose my cool a little." She breathed out a slow exhalation of air.

The red head wandered to the swing set, clutching the rusty chains that suspended the red chair from the ground. "...I didn't notice," she lied. She noticed Hisako struggle once or twice to keep her composure.

Hisako stood next to Iwasawa, leaving imprints behind her in the sandbox, "Just think. What would've happened to me if none of that ever happened? My brother, myself... We might've been able to live completely different lives, maybe better ones. But someone, a stranger, your father—was responsible for not letting that happened." Hisako sat on a swing next to band leader, "And I resent him for that. You understand?"

Losing your only family to a person who turns out to your best friend's father... plants a seed of doubt in the depths of the soul.

If it germinates and sprouts, it will strangle the strong evergreen of friendship slowly but surely, uprooting the foundation upon it was grown.

Iwasawa felt her lips tugging into a grimace at the mere thought.

No, that is something that she wouldn't allow. Never.

"Hisako," she stood up. The chains rattled at the sudden loss of weight, "To be honest, I don't. I don't have the same past that you experienced, no siblings either. So if I were to say to you that I did understand what you went through and how you felt, I would be deceiving you."

Hisako stared at songwriter wide-eyed for a moment before smirking. "...Don't you know that usually at these times, you're supposed to say something like you do understand to make the story flow? Gosh Asami-kun, that brutal honesty you got there can really ruin the mood. Follow the script written by the manga and anime industry, will ya?" she laughed mirthfully. The swing chains groaned as her body swayed.

Iwasawa smiled back at her, "I'll try to remember."

Hisako slung an arm over her friend's shoulder, "No need, I like that trait of yours. It's great entertainment when I watch you say the stone-cold piece of your mind to some fool." She removed her limb and punched the stale air, "But if I see your dad, I have little confidence in being able to restrain myself from slugging him. You don't mind, do ya'?"

"Not at all. Do whatever pleases you. But try not to hit the man unconscious. I need to have a discussion with him before you beat the crap of him."

Amusement played on the brunette's features, "Can't give you any promises, though. My present to him doesn't come with a receipt, so no returns, no refunds." Her feet kicked up sand as she walked through the sand box, "Let's go back to your place. I imagine Sekine and Yui have already messed the place up by now. Irie can't do much if she's up against two." She shuffled back towards the path they tread, giving a wave.

"You coming?"

"...Yeah."

The red head checked the time on her cell phone.

The time of confront is nearing.

"But you still owe the money."

* * *

**I love Pocky**, **but the use of it in this chapter was more than expected. Actually not even part of my original plan.**

**P.S.- I don't Pocky or the Glico company. **

**Any more questions about this story, feel free to ask in a review.  
**


	17. Concert

**Oh my gosh, it feels like it's been forever since I last updated. Bleh. At least summer break is here. **

**And so, enjoy the concert!**

* * *

Her experience calloused hands worked quickly with the strings of wire, pulling them through the nut of the guitar, tightening them to tune. She plucked the strings with her forefinger experimentally, listening the soft sound it produced. A satisfied grin came to her lips and she carefully settled the electric instrument into the black case.

Her music was set on the table in a thin stack. She finished changing her electric instrument's strings and she was completely dressed for the night.

Tonight was finally the night. Something she was looking forward to all week.

Iwasawa checked her clothing once more. She patted out any wrinkles she found and re-tied her ribbon. The SSS emblem on her right arm of the uniform was spotless. Her left hand floated above it for a moment before resting upon the embedded fabric, reminiscing.

A sigh of relief escaped her. To continue on with this is her will, her life and there's nothing in the world can change that. Her ideals and beliefs were set in stone and she will follow them to the end of the world or herself for that matter. That was how much music meant to her. It was intertwined in every single fiber of her being. Neither doubt nor regret will seek her upon this path.

But life was never fair.

She smirked, sticking a chocolate Pocky into her mouth, leisurely letting the thin biscuit hang. The red box full of the snacks was left open after Yui had left the complex earlier that afternoon. Iwasawa sucked on the biscuit slightly, allowing the chocolate to melt slowly in her mouth, savoring the liquidizing flavor of cocoa on her tongue.

A shrill ring echoed into her ears. Dusting off her hands from any clinging crumbs, she picked up her materials and the solid-bodied guitar in its case and went for the door. She bit down on the Pocky, chewing half of it lazily and devoured the next half in the same manner.

"Yo! All ready for today?" the brunette at the door intoned with obvious vivacity laced in her voice. She wore a similar uniform to Iwasawa's, as did rest of the band members and most likely their other companions, who Iwasawa hoped were going to show up. A guitar case strapped the brunette's back and her music tucked under her arm.

At the sound of her friend's vigor, Iwasawa felt the excitement within her grow. Like the flame inside her heart was being fanned into a raging inferno, getting ready to burst forth into the night. "Yeah. Let's make this concert a night to remember."

Hisako fist-pumped, "That's the spirit! Can't have our leader down in the dumps today."

The cool wind blew refreshingly at her bare skin. Iwasawa brushed a stray lock of her hair from her face. "Who said anything about that?" Iwasawa replied smoothly as she locked the door at the complex, not looking at Hisako until she was done with the task. A part of her felt like it was unnecessary to even to lock the door. After all, everyone in the band can enter and leave whenever they wanted. Totally unfair.

"Landlady-san coming too?" Hisako asked, taking the middle-aged woman into consideration. Iwasawa paused, drudging up the memory of her and the said lady from yesterday.

"No. She isn't. Unfortunately, she made other reservations with her family before I got the chance to ask. I believe she's at the next town over. Dinner, I believe."

Hisako hummed a note in acceptance for the woman's reason for not being able to be present at the show. She abruptly grabbed one of Iwasawa's hands and skipped ahead, dragging the girl out to the cemented sidewalk in the direction of the school. Hisako was already hyper on the sugar of euphoria.

Iwasawa ripped her hand away quickly. "Aren't you little overexcited?"

The lead guitarist went a few paces ahead, unable to control her gaiety, "But Iwasawa," she drawled like a delighted little child that just received a new toy, "It's a real concert! All to ourselves. No sharing the stage with some other people or interrupted breaks in between to ruin the rhythm. The night is finally ours, and amazingly without the people trying to get it canceled because we're a "disturbance" or it isn't legal!" She sounded exhilarated. Her eyes were a pearly silver, gleaming with passion.

"The way you word it makes it seem like what we do is illegal." Iwasawa reflected upon their past guerrilla lives. Sure, they often broke school rules and many more of the like, but they didn't do anything too bad. Trying to rebel against a super-powerful angel (which was kinda stupid when you think about), stealing, destroying and defacing school property, carrying dangerous weapons and trespassing into the dorms was definitively within the line of the law, if you consider their situation and their reasons.

"Anyway, the point is that Girls Dead Monster is having their first concert ever! I imagined you to be more, uh, excited 'bout this."

"I'm just being myself. I have more control over my emotions than most," Iwasawa replied smoothly. That was true. She was on the inside, ecstatic, but she wasn't going to freely show that. The ability to openly display her disposition rusted over significantly over years she spent with her parents. It's wasn't too bad, but she preferred being this way. It looked rather tiring to be someone with near limitless energy like Yui or Sekine. Tiring, but amusing to watch.

"That's true... but shouldn't you lighten up a little more?"

"Nope, I'm fine. Save your enthusiasm until we get on stage," Iwasawa picked up the pace of her walking speed, stopping to turn around when she was a good meter ahead of the brunette, "Tonight's a big night after all."

* * *

The two guitarists reached the large steel entrance to the school. Hisako grinned amiably to everyone and anyone who caught her gaze. The grounds were already loaded with a crowd, chattering excitedly. Iwasawa felt her stomach flutter, like a bird flapping its wings madly in its cage.

It was surprising to see such a large amount of people. Sure, this was a small city, not even close to the size of Tokyo, but the outcome of this concert's multitude was much larger than the as lives the band had back in the afterlife. Iwasawa expected it to be more of a school-wide event, rather than the entire city.

But, it matter not. The more, the better.

The evening sun sat near the horizon line, the streaks of light basking everything in a warm glow. Long shadows stalked their owners as they chatted amongst themselves.

Iwasawa gripped the strap of her guitar case tighter.

Hisako nudged Iwasawa's shoulder with her elbow, breaking her train of thought, "What do you think of this, eh? Yui's got some amazing advertising skills, doesn't she?" she winked. "And it's still a good thirty or so minutes early too. Look at that line. This is a great turnout."

"Overconfident, are we?"

"Nonsense. I'm not like that guy over there." she pointed vaguely at a student, someone they met in past and completely humiliated. A fun game for her and Hisako, not so much for that guy. Iwasawa made an internal guess at who it was.

Looking at the scene around them, Iwasawa's throat hitched slightly. For some odd reason, Iwasawa suddenly felt a strange feeling in her gut. A strange, sinking feeling. Was it nervousness? No, impossible. After everything she done before, something like this concert throws her off-balance?

Blasphemy, utter and complete blasphemy. Iwasawa waved off the insignificant feeling. She must have

eaten something bad.

Yeah. That's it.

So she decided. After today, she is giving all of the Pocky to Sekine and Yui.

Hisako discerned the silence of the Girls Dead Monster's vocalist as peculiar. Couldn't Iwasawa show even a little bit of jubilation? Iwasawa was always bad with displaying emotions, but gosh. Her self-control must be quite impressive.

The brunette head jerked up at the notice of a wave from her peripheral vision. She shook the redhead's shoulder, "Sekine and Irie are waving at us."

The latter were busy with handing out tickets to people for their gig, before finding the other band members. Sekine and Irie handed the rest of the work down to the teachers that were keeping the line orderly and somewhat straight.

Since the school was sponsoring the event, it was part of the compromise that Yui had made with the principal that they will be charging the tickets and refreshments. The school would get about seventy percent of the money made and band would get the other thirty. Yui agreed without another thought.

"Hey, you made it," Sekine greeted, as soon she and Irie were in close enough distance. Hisako scoffed at the choice of words the blonde used.

"'Made it'? Of course we would. We're the ones who are going on stage."

Sekine winced at the sudden rise in tone of voice coming from the lead guitarist, "I was joking. Joking," she assured.

"What's this? I thought you guys might be selling 'Girls Dead Monster merchandise?'" Hisako asked.

"Already did. We sold out long before you got here," Sekine replied wryly. "Be happy. At least we're popular."

Irie let an awkward smile overtake her features as she took her turn in greeting with a polite bow.

"You guys ready for tonight?" Iwasawa asked, knowing very well their answer.

Their feedback was somewhere along the lines of "I was born ready!" and "Of course we are!". A valid response. Iwasawa patted the two shorter girls' heads. "Good."

"Hey! Everyone!"

The group turned around at the voice.

Yui walked briskly to them, clutching a spiral notebook to her chest with one hand, the other she used to latch onto Iwasawa's arm as soon as she approached. The pointed tail wagged back and forth by some mysterious force (Hisako stared at it wonderingly at how the accessory worked). The pinkette pulled at her sempai's arm as she started to take step forward. "You have to come over here! Everyone's waiting!" Releasing Iwasawa, she began to skip into the direction of the courtyard.

Everyone? Iwasawa raised a brow at this, but nevertheless followed Yui as she led the group.

If everyone was what she thought it was...

"Oh! There they are, the guest of honors!"

A familiar voice.

Yui ran into the arms of a blue-haired young man around the same age as herself. He tussled the former leader of Girls Dead Monster before looking up at Iwasawa. She hadn't had enough time to display her surprise, before he opened his mouth. "Yo! Been a while, hasn't it?"

The gathering of the people she had been fighting together with brought a pulse of nostalgia to her being, all wearing the same uniform as she did.

"It really has," a girl walked forward from the shallow shadow of the tree behind her, a bright green ribbon fluttered lightly in the breeze. She extended her hand. Iwasawa gave it a firm shake.

"It's nice seeing you again, Yuri," Iwasawa smiled.

Yuri turned to Hisako and held out her hand the same way as she did to Iwasawa. Hisako took it graciously, "Likewise."

Yuri peered over the brunette's shoulders as she smiled, "How long are you going just stare at me like that? It's not like I'm dead," she joked.

"Y-Yurippe!" Iwasawa moved out of the way as Sekine and Irie jumped the afterlife battlefront leader in a bone-crushing bear hug. Yuri uttered a small squeak as she tipped over from the embrace. The other SSS members approached them, many of them were faces that Iwasawa instantly recognized. Ooyama, Yusa, TK, Matsushita, Takamatsu, and even Takeyama was present. Noda still had that halberd of his and Fujimaki kept his sword at his waist. Funny they haven't been arrested for possession of dangerous weapons.

Otonashi stepped out in front of the redhead along with Kanade beside him. Iwasawa beamed at the pair, "You made it."

Otonashi nodded, "If I didn't, what would you do?" he laughed. "Everyone here managed to find out about the concert. We all are expecting a mind-blowing performance. Think you still got it in you?"

Iwasawa recognized a challenge when she saw one. Otonashi's comment sounded like he was underestimating her, the band. She smirked, "I'll leave it up for the audience to decide." She turned her prior colleagues, "Thank you—everyone—for showing up here for the first Girls Dead Monster live and the first of many to come," She raised a closed fist into the air, "Give us your full attention when go on stage—the night not going to end until the crows caw!"

The afterlife battlefront imitated the vocalist, pumping their fists skyward, with cheers and whoops of encouragement and support. A sign that meant that there was absolutely no room for disappointment.

"Iwasawa-san," Kanade started, pulling a bouquet of flowers from behind her back. "Here," she offered them out to the redhead. "For luck."

"Luck?" Iwasawa stood baffled for a moment, "What luck? We have skill and experience to back us up. And the blessing of our beloved Tenshi also stands with us. There is no need for luck," confidence was apparent her words. But she wouldn't let it go any further than that. It was one thing to be confident in one's abilities, but it's another to be cocky and smug. And Iwasawa did not roll like that.

Kanade smiled, honey amber orbs shining. "Then," she gently pressed her palm to the vocalist's forehead, standing on the tips of her toes to make up from the height difference, "I'll pray that tonight goes well for you." She took her hand away and clasped both of them together into prayer, closing her eyes. She mumbled something quickly and opened her eyes once more, a lightened expression on her face.

Iwasawa inhaled the sweet scent of the flowers, "Thank you, Kanade."

More pressure mounted onto the redhead's shoulders. But Iwasawa didn't mind; in fact she welcomed

it. She worked well under pressure.

"What, you want to have her blessing and not God's? A shame," a green haired boy walked up beside Otonashi, a face she wasn't that familiar with.

"Naoi," Otonashi chastised, "watch your manners."

Ah...

This was Naoi, Kanade's associate in the student council back in the afterlife.

Hinata laughed, "You still call yourself God?"

Naoi's eyes flared red as he glowered at the baseball player, "What was that, scum? How dare you speak back to me with such a disrespectful tone," he tipped his black cap lower, hiding part of his glare.

It was then that Iwasawa noticed that both Naoi and Kanade were not wearing the "Class 3S" uniform. They were wearing casual clothing instead.

Makes some sort of sense, they weren't part of the battlefront. Though, they were supposedly, very close with the members, namely Otonashi.

Laughter broke out from the two's usual bickering. Noda was silent but smirked at how idiotic they were acting. Fujimaki shared an amused grin with Matsushita and Ooyama. Takamatsu did his little glasses habit and Takeyama had his undivided attention at his laptop screen.

It was like... nothing had changed. Everything—everything, was exactly the way she had left it, before she disappeared. With the exception of two new unofficial recruits.

A tap, two, on her shoulder. Iwasawa turned around. "Ah, Yuri. What is it?"

"I have something to speak with you about. Have a minute?"

Iwasawa reflexively glanced back at Hisako. She was busy conversing. The concert was about to start soon.

"Don't worry; it won't take too much of your time," Yuri added in reassurance. "This is your leader's orders."

Well, if she commanded it. "All right."

* * *

Yuri pulled her away from the rest of the group, as they were busy catching up with their new lives. Iwasawa shouldered her guitar into a more comfortable position, watching her chief. Yuri adjusted the white beret on her head before beginning. "Iwasawa-san."

"Yeah?" she spontaneously stood diligently at the sound of her name, "Is something the matter?"

"I heard that you've been experiencing some... after-effects from your time that you came back to this world," Yuri's expression suddenly became serious. "Do you get where I am going at?"

Iwasawa processed what she said slowly.

"Do you mean my... family conflicts?"

"Exactly," Yuri affirmed. She noticed the redhead shift uncomfortably, with vermillion eyed growing slightly dim. The topic must have brought up unpleasant memories. "Sorry from bringing something like this up," she apologized.

"No, no. It's fine," Iwasawa shook it off quickly, regaining the shine in her eyes, "But I'm surprised. How do you-"

Yuri waved a hand in front of her body, interrupting her, "I did some research once I came to the 'real world'. You, whom has been with the battlefront since its conception and one of the more important members that disappeared first, were one of the people that I invested time on investigating on first."

"Still, how-"

"Do you remember our number-one operative in stealth?" she pointed to the trunk of one of the trees near them. "I managed to come into contact with Shiina-san and Yusa first. They contributed to my investigation quite well." Iwasawa squinted, trying to find any hint of the ninja to appear somewhere near Yuri.

Sure enough, a dark blue scarf fluttered in the wind, like it was waving at her and the crimson eyed ninja appeared from of her hiding place. She leaned into the bark of the evergreen giant, arms crossed, watching them intently. She was looking out for them, almost like a bodyguard.

"I still understand why you are questioning me about this when you know so much." Iwasawa accidentally let her tone slip, giving her statement a slightly colder tone than she wanted it, but Yuri didn't seem to mind.

"Once again, I apologize for my rudeness. I know I shouldn't be invading into your personal affairs, but this is important, to both me and you," Yuri hastily explained. "I care too deeply to see any of my friends get hurt, and knowing the type of past you have endured, I became worried. If anything like that were to happen again, I—I wouldn't be able to bear living with it. That, even now, I am incapable of protecting anyone. I don't want to see that again," she confessed, the words flying out of her mouth before she could even give some time to think about it. A light pink surfaced on her cheeks, hardly visible, out of embarrassment for her outburst.

Iwasawa thought back to what Yuri had told her about her own past. The burglary, her siblings, their death. Iwasawa suddenly regretted the words she said earlier.

"That's why I wanted to speak with you. Do you see my reasoning now?" Yuri finished.

"Yuri... you're..." Iwasawa found her voice to be stupidly weak.

"I also apologize for giving such a speech before your concert. It's a big day after all," the battlefront leader said seriously, eyes sharp. "I'd like to take this chance to remind you if you haven't figured it out yet; you are one of the SSS, the organization that I have founded and continue to oversee. Though there are a whole lot of idiots and morons in the SSS, we will always be here to help another in a time of aid. If you need anything—anything at all—we will be here. Keep that in mind and don't forget it." Yuri turned back around to where the others were still at and began to walk away. Shiina already vanished from her spot. Iwasawa let Yuri's words sink in, to let them forever be engrave into her mind. She swallowed the lump in her throat.

"Yuri!" she called out. The aqua eyed girl turned around, looking at her questioningly. She only walked ahead about few meters.

The redhead bowed her head solemnly, "Thank you."

Yuri stared, puzzled, but only for a moment. "Don't give it any more thought today. You have to get

going, right?" she tapped the invisible watch on her wrist as she smirked. "No slacking off. I'm

expecting a spectacular performance as always."

Iwasawa lifted her head, tightening her grip on the black strap across her shoulder. "Yeah."

"Operation Tornado: Start!"

* * *

Irie sat behind her full set of drum, her foot anxiously tapping the floor. "Yui is amazing, isn't she? To able to convince the principal to let us do a live outdoor concert. Look at this stage!" Her foot tapped more vigorously on the black stage, "Where in the world can you rent a stage like this? It's like a smaller version of the stages at Budokan or those expos!" she produced a muted drum roll on the snare. "This is so cool!"

Hisako practiced a riff as she answered, "This is practically the same as before, 'cept we're alive and we're not breaking rules or curfew." She did a pull-off the forth string in succession to a hammer-on. "I bet the principal using our gig to rack up some points from the community. Y'know, to get more money and whatnot. With the amount of people that came, the school's bound to make a good pile of cash off us."

"You think after this, I can convince my teacher to kick my grade up a notch? I'm not doing too good in English," Sekine slide her fretting hand up and down the rosewood neck of her white bass, "Aren't we doing what the adults always wanted us to do? Contribute to society and stuff?"

Hisako snorted at the blonde, "Hah! I doubt it. Why try to fix your grade? In about a week, it'll be back where it was before, or even lower."

"Then we'll have put on more lives, don't we?"

"All right, that's enough," Iwasawa clapped her hands to get the members attention. "Yui is almost done with the introductions," her thumb pointed to outside of the onyx curtains, the only garment that separated them from the audience. "Get ready. Yui will give us the signal any moment now."

As expected, Yui ran back from the other side of the curtain, giving a thumbs-up as she rushed to the stage and sound control. She lifted her fingers high for the band to see, mouthing the numbers as she slowly let them drop, counting down.

5...

4...

3...

2...

1...

Iwasawa inhaled sharply as she felt the adrenaline pump through her veins.

Guitar feedback resounded, with a following of strong, powerful strums and curtains rose.

_mugen ni ikitai mugen ni ikiraretara subete kanau_

_demo ironna mono ga atashi o oikondeku_

_ikiru nokori jikan yume no zahyou yukue_

_zenbu daiji na mono na no ni_

_ii sa kokora de chotto amai mono tabeteiko_

_sou iu shikouteishi bakari tokui ni natta_

From the first word that flew out of her lips, the crowd roared out in acclamation, their rapture filled the darkening heavens above. Cheering so loudly already made Iwasawa's cheeks singe a light red with near embarrassment. Was Yui to blame for inciting the crowd this much? The drums battered resonantly as the next verse flowed in.

_aruitekita michi furikaeru to _

_iya na koto bakkari demo uunzari da yo_

_fureru mono o kagayakashiteyuku _

_sonna michi o ikitekitakatta yo_

Kanade had sudden a flashback. This song, _Alchemy_, was the one she walked in on.

She remembered the sounds, liveliness, _her_ voice rushing back into her conscious. Why hadn't she immediately stopped the performance like she had planned? Instead she had stopped to listen, something that was completely inconceivable before she oh-so casually stepped into the school auditorium, having already planned out her actions beforehand.

_mushou ni ikitai asette bakari no hibi subete kiesou_

_demo sabotte mo miru datte tsukarechau ja nai sonna mujun shikou_

_atashi atama dokka shiranai uchiutta mitai da_

"Kanade? You okay? You're spacing out," Otonashi asked, taking his eyes off the girls on stage, taking into account her blank stare.

_ikka kokora de chotto byouin e ittokou_

_zutto okiterareru kusuri wa oitemasen ka?_

The silver-haired girl shook her head. "No, it's nothing. Just remembered something is all." She focused back on the performance.

_bosaa to tsuttatteru dake de mou _

_kaseki ni natteshimaisou na nda yo_

_dare kara mo wasurerareta you na _

_kusunda sonzai ni natteshimau yo_

The song begun its steady acceleration towards the climax. The lead guitar ran into its solo, the rest withdrew back.

_ii sa kokora de chotto konjou o miseteyaru_

_jibun de hoo tataite sonzai no shoumei e_

Iwasawa paused between the ephemeral rests of the lyrics to catch her breath. She glanced at Hisako, who was wearing a blithe smile, her silver orbs closed as she concentrated more on her electric blue guitar than the assemblage in front of her.

_aruitekita michi furikaeranai _

_iya na koto bakkari demo mae e susume_

_fureru mono o kagayakashiteyuku _

_sonna sonzai ni nattemiseru yo_

Cadence returned. Immense feelings of pleasure, bliss, made the redhead fill with satisfaction as it poured into her body in vast amounts like a surging river. It electrified her, giving her more drive.

_miseru yo_

Hisako began to finish up the few bits she had left.

_miseru yo_

The ecstatic high that charged Iwasawa's body gradually lessened its hold on her, calming her down from euphoria.

The throng of people blew up into an exuberant rave and ovation. Sekine smirked smugly. Yup, that's

the reaction she was looking for. Her sapphire orbs twinkled in the receding sunlight.

This is the best!

Irie wiped off the sweat that accumulated in her hands on the fabric of her blue skirt. Unladylike, yes. But, really now? At this moment, she wasn't some typical little rich girl. She was Girls Dead Monster's drummer and all the crap about manners and elegance meant nothing right now.

Graceful, sure. While she played. Ah, if her parents could see her now, behaving so different from the way they (more precisely: the maids and servants) taught her. She'll be rolling on the floor laughing.

The drummer held her hand above her eyes, shielding it from the half-sphere of golden light. With the setting of the sun, the beginning of twilight striped the heavens. The ebb of the amber afternoon was starting its transformation into the cobalt dusk and lastly a violet tinted ebony.

The light wind seized the whoops and cheers. Her trained ears caught wind of Ai and Rena in the midst of the dense public. Irie grinned inwardly at this.

Iwasawa had begun the next number in their performance, eliciting more cheers from the ever-growing crowd.

_furafura na mama ieji o tadotte_

_tsumetai heya ni korogarikomu yo_

_sono hashikko de nemuri ni ochiteikou_

The metal strings sent out pulses of sound from the overdriven guitar. The song started with the rhythm guitar and pounding drums, leading the pace. The bass backed the sound up and the blue Jazzmaster guitar took the lead, letting the other guitar fall back.

_hanayaida yuuhan o hasu ni mitekita_

_onaka ga karappo demo ki ni shinaideita_

_kitto saki ni atashi dake ni sukueru mono ga_

Cardinal irises scanned the scene in front of her. Iwasawa scrutinized the crowd. An uneasy feeling coiled in her gut. A bad sign.

She chose to ignore it.

_aru hazu to utatteiru_

_sono omoi ga atashi o tsuyoku suru muteki ni kaeru_

Her unease grew until it was intolerable. She couldn't shake it off. Why?

_michi ni uzukumatteiru hito ga ite_

_hanashi o shitara atashi to nitete_

_sono ato wa futari de gigu ni natte_

_kurayami ni sakebitsuzuketa_

No! Not now!

Iwasawa took in a big breathe of air as she paused to fill her lungs with air and to clear her thoughts.

This was definitively not the time.

_konna koto mo aru nda yametari shinai_

Hisako started to worry. Iwasawa sounded a little off on the last verse. She wasn't off-tune or anything, yet she couldn't place her finger on what was wrong. She was back to normal now, but...

Did something happen?

The brunette hurriedly stole a glance at Sekine and Irie. The three of them caught each other's gaze at the same split-second. Hisako felt a little bit relieved. Sekine and Irie seemed to have noticed as well.

Looks like it wasn't her imagination.

_soukai ni heion o ubatteshimae_

_ichijikan mo nemureba daijoubu da kara_

_hi ga noboru made koko wa raibu suteeji_

Someone in the mass of people caught her attention. By sheer force of will, Iwasawa tried not to cringe at the eyesore.

_sono te ni wa kankoohii_

_maiku ni shite minna de utatteru_

_atashi mo kizamu_

Why? Why? Why?

Why was he here now?

_mayotta toki ni wa mata kono basho e modottekureba ii yo_

_atashi wa itsu demo utatteru kara tobisaki no wakarazu ni_

Yuri narrowed her eyes at the vocalist. Iwasawa-san made a slip-up.

No. Not a slip-up. A change in tone? A very small for just a fleeting moment, but it was there. Very unlike her. She looked around her. Nobody else seemed to notice. Well, yeah. She herself barely heard it. She regarded Yusa at her right.

_saa sa okaeri kimi wa mou daijoubu_

Yusa still wore her emotionless mask, but over the time the silent blonde had been around her, Yuri had begun to find the leaks of her emotions that would rarely escape through the cracks. Right now, the girl emitted a faint, agitated vibe.

_atatakana yuuhan ga mukaetekureru_

_sou iu koto kizukazu ni ikitekita ndesho?_

_onaka ippai tabetara mou wasuretara ii yo_

Yusa fiddled her headphones dangling from her neck, the corner of mouth curved slightly downward into a tiny frown. Did she just hear something off-key? She thought she heard Iwasawa make a questionable mistake somehow during the course of the song.

But, that cannot be true. Her ears clearly must be playing with her.

Rarely, if ever, did Iwasawa made an error in being in key. Usually it was Sekine due her lack of experience. Irie had times when she missed some notes when she was learning a new song. But Iwasawa and Hisako was like perfectionists, always in tune and in time. Yusa was never the type to notice that a voice that was considered to be flat or sharp. So there's no reason to suddenly feel the need to critique.

She glanced at her headphones, as if they were the center of the problem at hand.

Maybe she should lower the volume of her music next time she wore them.

_itsu datte sakendeita makkuro na urusai karasu nado_

_zutto naiteru kaakaa naiteru onaka mo sukashite_

Once more, the multitude erupted in applause. Iwasawa forced a scowl drawing at her lips into a smile. "Thank you! But, please excuse us. We are going to take a brief intermission right now. Please use this time to drink some refreshments. Tonight's is going to be a long night," she said, letting the microphone carry her voice across campus as she pardoned the band.

Yui was confused. There was no scheduled intermission now. It was supposed to be later in the show.

Nevertheless, the pinkette hastily drawn in the curtains, rushing to the vocalist afterward.

"Sempai!" she called out to the redhead as she set her electric guitar on a stand, "Why are we having a break? It's not yet-"

"Sorry, Yui. But there's something I have to take off. If I ignored it and continued, I'm positive that I will make more faults. I'm pretty sure made one while I was singing earlier, did you hear it?" Iwasawa said sharply.

Hisako frowned. "Yeah. I did. Irie and Sekine did too," she gestured vaguely at the two. Sekine and Irie shared the same worried face. "What's with you, Iwasawa?"

"I—just have to go. Now," Iwasawa said sternly, beginning to walk off the stage, but Hisako caught her shoulder, holding her back.

"Wait. Iwasawa, is it him?"

She remained quiet.

"It is, isn't it?" the brunette growled through gritted teeth. "Take me with you. I-"

"No!" Iwasawa whipped around, shoving off the girl's hand. Sekine and Irie visibly deflated from the redhead's sudden exclamation. "I don't to create a scene. I just want to talk—"

"Like hell you are!" Hisako's tone was rising dangerously high. Yui flinched. "If that guy is here to cause trouble, then I should kick the damn bastard out! And you're telling me to stay here and wait?" Her hands balled into fists. "Iwasawa. Let me go with you."

"Hisako," she started evenly, "please. I'll go. Alone. I promise I'll back." She turned to Yui. "How much time do I have left?"

"Eh? Oh! Uh..." she fumbled with the notebook her arms, scrambling to open to it to view the originally planned schedule, "Well, since this an earlier break than expected, then you have-," she glanced at her pink wristwatch, pushing away her sleeve, "about thirteen more minutes."

"Then I'll be back in ten."

Hisako thought it over, trying to cool her head. "Ten minutes?"

Iwasawa nodded, "Ten minutes. Give me ten minutes," she affirmed.

The lead guitarist scowled. The vocalist wasn't budging, she knew that. Iwasawa could be exceeding stubborn. Iwasawa stared her down defiantly. Hisako felt her decision begin to crumble in the face of the girl's resolution. "...Fine. But, no what happens, you have to come back. If you get kidnapped or something, then it's your fault for letting me be with you." Gathering the rest of her energy, she forced a smile in order to act a little more lighthearted. "Oh, whatever shall we do without our vocalist? We cannot go on with our treasured vocalist!" she said playfully, doing her best to keep her spirits up. "If you don't return, looks like Yui will have to take over, is that okay?"

"Yeah, that's fine. Yui has been putting a lot of effort in practicing on her vocals. But that won't necessary. Sorry, Yui," Iwasawa said.

Yui shook her head vehemently, "Don't apologize! I wanted to make this concert because I wanted to hear Sempai sing."

"Irie, Sekine," Iwasawa turned to the two, "Look after things while I'm gone, 'kay?"

Sekine clicked her heals and saluted, "Roger that, ma'am!" Irie stuttered out a "Y-yes! We will!"

Yet, the drummer still seemed unconvinced, gripping her wooden drumsticks to her chest, amethyst irises peering into vermillion filled with concern, "Iwasawa... You'll be back, right?"

Iwasawa let a light, reassuring smile play on her lips as she walked closer the purplette, "I'm not too keen on breaking promises," she patted Irie's head comfortingly. "I will be back."

Irie nodded hesitantly, "Mhm. Okay."

Iwasawa smiled at the girl one more time before she ran towards the short metal stairs that led off the large stage. "Ten minutes," she uttered and she rushed off.

* * *

Ignoring everyone around, she ran. Running as fast as she could to her destination.

To see that person.

She panted, catching her breath from running long distance from the one side of the grounds to the other, ending up at the far side of the school, opposite from where she was earlier. Her natural athleticism seemed to be gradually withering away from sitting all day writing music. She stood in front of the imposing steel gates. The gates seemed to have an unearthly appearance in the dark, towering above her.

A lone, black silhouette near the structures radiated an air of dignity, something that stirred a sense of revulsion in her body. She repressed it instantly in order to prevent any unnecessary emotions to surface.

"Don't you have a performance to do?" the figure asked jeeringly.

"Didn't you hear? We're on intermission at the moment," Iwasawa retorted. "But, you must've not heard, seeing how far away you are from the stage."

Ryogo snorted, "Oh, I heard. Apparently, it's that loud. You're disrupting the public peace." The streetlights flickered, giving the two a second-long chance to stare each other down. Iwasawa frowned at his haughty gaze when she made eye contact.

"Fortunately, this _is _a public event, so no worries. Everything has been taken care of," Iwasawa quipped. "So, _sir_," she spat out like it left a bad taste in her mouth, leaving her grimacing and quickly losing her previous composure, "May I ask why you are way over here? You were just at our performance a few minutes ago. I saw you leave before the song finished."

"I... merely came to see how my daughter's concert was going," he replied tiredly, "You appeared to doing fine when I arrived so I decided to leave. I heard the first song. It was..." he searched for an appropriate word, "...good. To my taste, at the very least," he finished lamely. He fixed the collar of his white shirt under his suit.

"Thank you. I appreciate your honesty."

He scoffed. Iwasawa's brow twitched, but he didn't seem to notice, "Good to know you learned some sort of manners."

Iwasawa brushed off his comment, "So? Is that really all you want?" Ryogo leaned onto the ingot pole, its light no longing wavering, casting a tawny luster upon them.

"...No, it wasn't," Ryogo muttered, pulling something out of his jacket pocket, his dark blue suit he wore wrinkled. "Since you are so short on time, I'll make this brief." He reached out for his daughter's hand. Iwasawa didn't pull it away, much to his surprise, though he made contact with her skin, she shivered despite the tepid climate. The coolness of his fingers contrasted against her warm palm. He slipped the item into her hand. He retracted his own appendage, stuffing it into his slack's pockets.

"This is...?"

"My business card," he answered simply, feeling the cautious glare from his daughter. "I would like to speak to you about certain affairs. I'm sure that you will be interested in them."

"What kind of affairs?" Skepticism lined her voice.

"I will explain everything at another time. You're busy, aren't you? I have a bit of a background in business so I know whether or not if I am wasting my time or wasting your own." He sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose in aggravation. Iwasawa noticed the black rings under his eyes.

"Have you been sleeping well?" she asked, not realizing that she opened her mouth until she finished the question.

He sneered, "What? Worried about your father, Asami? That is none of your concern, nor is it important to be acknowledged." Iwasawa mentally berated herself. How foolish of her to even ask.

Ryogo pivoted, his back to the redhead, "I must get going now. I consumed too much time here. Asami." He began in stride, increasing his volume as walked away from the premises, "I trust you will call, yes?"

She didn't reply, only staring at his posterior blankly until he was out of her field of vision, her agitation gradually dissipating as its source disappeared into the caliginosity. Though doubt lingered inside her, plaguing her subconscious, she kept a taciturn face. Clamping down the urge to call the man back, she started to return to the stage, crumbling the card in her hand. She felt ashamed. She had a meager amount of time to speak, having to wait even longer for answers.

She uttered a single word, seeped with bitterness.

"Damn."

A shadow leered from behind the girl in front of the gates. The shadow crept slowly backwards, back deeper into the school grounds avoiding any of the lamplight set around the area. And then camouflaging with the dim background, it vanished.

* * *

Irie perked up at the metallic stomping. Carefully placing her drumsticks on her prized snare drum, she whipped sideways to the stairs. "Iwasawa!"

The name led the rest of the band to the direction Irie was staring at. Up from the stairs, Iwasawa appeared, unruffled and poised and with impeccable timing. She smiled feebly at her friends, "Am I good?" she asked amiably.

"Flawless, as almost usual," Hisako replied. She sulked a little, still upset perhaps at the fact she wasn't able to pummel some guy to the ground. Iwasawa would have to make up from that. Perhaps some Pocky could do the lead guitarist well. Iwasawa did a pile of them in the cabinets of her home.

Yui grinned broadly at her sempai with her canines showing, thrilled that she was true to her word. Not a shred of faithlessness for the current vocalist of her favorite band was in Yui's entire being ans she was proud of that fact.

"And? You all set? Anything else you need to take care of?" Sekine lifted her ivory bass from its stand, regarding the redhead's presence. "No more interruptions?"

Iwasawa shook her head. "No more." The blonde beamed.

"Then let's get this show on the road!" Yui roared, "Continuing on with the plan, let's give the crowd a surprise, shall we?" her impish nature revealing itself once more, her rose eyes sparkling new-found mirth.

Shoving her troubles to the back of her mind, Iwasawa picked up her guitar once more, stroking the polished surface. Its sheen reflected the dim stage-lights, as if anticipating its owner to let the aesthetic notes ring out into the blackness.

Forget the past and relentless future and focus on the present.

The present was where she lived in at this moment.

Living and breathing. In one of the most important moments in her life.

No more thinking.

Just sing.

Her stringed instrument echoed its notes into the moonlit night, giving a chance for them band to startle the crowd with a commanding burst of sound. Girls Dead Monster haphazardly drew everyone in illuminated garth back to them, like magnetism. Shooting shockwaves that vibrated powerfully against the air, resounding into the soul. Some shivered at the intensity of the sudden waves of sonorous vibration.

_Just sing._

_"Douyara nakisugita mitai" to kimi wa warau_

A onyx crow gazed at the spotlights, fixated on the red-haired girl singing.

Iwasawa glanced backward, meeting transient contact with the bird's darkened pupils.

And without an another sound, it flew.

Taking all the torment mounted on the girl onto itself, it receded into the night.

* * *

**If anyone's wondering, the song order goes like this:**

**1: Alchemy**

**2: Thousand Enemies-Hot Meal**

**3: Aimai Elegy**

**Aimai Elegy isn't a Girls Dead Monster Song, though. It's from the album "Aimai Elegy" that Deco*27 made. marina (Iwasawa's singing VA) happens to sing that song as well as two others in the album. Though I'm not sure that there's a bass piece in the song... But there be covers of it. So, uh, imagine it there?**


	18. Discussion

The white card was crinkled in her hand. Frowning, she opened her palm, hesitantly unfolding the card. The bold print was scarred with intricate wrinkles and creases. It was still legible, a fact that made Iwasawa slightly uneasy. Being by herself in the complex didn't help either. There was a lingering feeling of anxiety circling throughout the entire room. Without Yui, Iwasawa was forced to realize how prone she was to solitariness, something that she gradually garnered from her upraising. She twirled the metal spoon in her porcelain mug of coffee absentmindedly by the handle with her slender forefinger. Tension knotted her muscles as Iwasawa sat upright rigidly. Her gaze was fixed on the shriveled square.

Signed in such a perfect, practiced penmanship. Has his signature always been so neat? She doesn't remember. She doesn't remember anything that rang a bell in her memory. All this time, she assumed that his handwriting would be a mess of squiggly lines. A poor assumption as it turned out to be.

Iwasawa's mind drifted off, as she contemplated her adolescence.

What is "family"?

She drew a blank, unable to formulate an answer to her own question. Her expression hardened instinctively, as if preparing for the emotions that were still hidden somewhere in the depths of heart to suddenly surge out like a sprung trap.

Then, what does a "normal" family have? Her mind tried to reword the query in an effort to reach a solution.

Pets. Yes, many families have pets. Like dogs and cats. Pets were a standard that most families had.

And parents. Parents listened and gave advice to problems that their children might have.

Families enjoy the time spent with each other too: a common example of a good, healthy relationship with a child and a parent. Talking with someone was proven to help deal with pent-up emotional or mental problems and being able to do so with someone you are familiar enough with is beneficial.

But like what? What do families do in order to be tolerant enough with each other that they would find their presence comforting?

Yuri had told her of the times when she was with her siblings at home. Siblings must be good thing to have. Maybe if Iwasawa herself had a sister or brother, then she wouldn't have felt so lonely before she found her only companion, her precious guitar.

A wave of affliction and a pang of melancholy struck her like a sudden jab to the heart.

She never had a pet, an attentive parent nor a sister or two. But it would be kinda... selfish of her to desire one now, wouldn't it? Others in the Battlefront experienced even worst things than she did during their previous lifetimes and it would put everything that she and her friends overcame to naught if she were to think that way. Regret nothing; there was nothing she could do to change it anyway.

Yet Iwasawa couldn't entirely shake the sliver of envy in her heart. She thought back to Rena and Ai for a brief moment. How do their families function as a "family"?

She brought the spoon to her mouth, sipping the black liquid.

It had gotten cold.

The rear legs of the wooden chair scraped the tiled flooring as Iwasawa moved to refill her mug with a new steaming brew of imported, Colombian coffee.

Iwasawa looked at her reflection in the ebony beverage. It bore the same color as his eyes.

Iwasawa Ryogo, the one who guided her childhood down into misery and into, what seemed like, death. He was now, supposedly, some big shot at a large medical business. Some strange bit of irony it was.

He caused her to have a cerebral contusion and an induced coma. Did he feel sorrow, anguish, or even regret over what he did? Did he reflect on his actions and come to the decision to become a better person? It was unlikely development. Whenever he's around, she could still smell that that familiar stink of alcohol rising from his clothes, emitted from his breath. Obviously still the same drunken wretch.

Iwasawa ruffled her hair out of frustration, drawing a sharp intake of breath. His words echoed in her mind.

He could have been involved in the reasons why Irie, Hisako, Sekine and Yui "lost" their lives.

His words were untrustworthy. Don't trust him.

Fake. Lies.

But could it be true?

Perhaps he did have a change. A change to do good; to help others.

Iwasawa let out a laugh. Cold and bitter. "That's not even possible," she choked.

Was it possible? Wasn't there a saying that even the worst of people could become good? Iwasawa could not imagine such a thing happened to her father.

Maybe she was being too biased. All of her perceptions of the man came from her own experience. It could be that it was just her and her mother that were the only ones that suffered the way they did. There could be a chance that he provided happiness and love to others with the exception of them. She admitted that she never heard a word of his past. She really never had a chance to.

He could have, like, a whole other family somewhere. A happy family.

Iwasawa shook her head indignantly, trying to rid the morbid thoughts crawling slowly into the inner workings of her mind. It was making her nauseous.

"Disgusting," she muttered quietly to herself. Her black coffee started to taste rancid with its strong bitterness.

When she did become like this? The hateful ideas and thoughts felt repulsive. It muddled her, giving her vile abhorrence. That was not like her—this is not like her.

Who is this?

Who is this person, the one splattering the rancor and corroding venom throughout her mind.

Uncertainly, Iwasawa raised her left palm to eye-level. It was shaking.

She was shaking. Her entire body trembled with enigmatic fear.

Fear. Terror. She was scared.

Of what she will find when she reaches deeper and deeper into the crevices.

And then, she jolted as her brain reached something like a moral epiphany. "Ah..." It came to her slowly, a questionable epiphanic moment.

"Was it his fault?"

She opened up her closed right hand again, staring at the printed words. Those marred elegant, flowing letters. Was it...

Iwasawa Ryogo's fault?

The cause of everything, was it his fault?

Everything is his fault.

He is the one to be blamed.

He is—

_Ring Ring!_

The buzzing of her phone broke her out of her stupor, defusing the near-exploding anxiety immediately. In a quick movement, Iwasawa picked up the ringing device rather clumsily, tapping one of the dials and in the process, dropping the card on the floor. "H-hello?" Her voice cracked unwillingly.

"Hiya," Sekine piped from the other line. Her upbeat personality was calming to hear. "Just wanted to check up ya'."

Iwasawa was finally given the chance to crack a smile that morning. "That's new. When did you become to be the caring type, Sekine?"

The blonde laughed. "Did you always think of me as an uncaring type of person, Iwasawa? I'm ashamed, deeply ashamed in you. Tsk Tsk." Iwasawa could imagine the girl wagging her finger at her as she clicked her tongue.

"Maybe a little. Honestly, I wasn't expecting a call this early. Are you looking for Yui? She's out right now; I think she's with Hinata. Baseball practice I believe."

"Yui, nah," Sekine dismissed the fang-tan, "I'm not calling for her. I'm pretty sure I asked for you, otherwise I wouldn't be calling your cell," Sekine replied smoothly, laying the topic of Yui to rest. "And? How are you doing this fine, glorious morning?"

Iwasawa ran her hand through her hair, wondering whether she wanted to go back what she started thinking about that morning. "I... could be better, I guess," she answered ambiguously as a precaution, "Why?"

"We—as in me, Irie, Hisako, and Yui—were just... how can I put this, concerned? About you and the stuff last night."

She wanted to forget about that.

"...I didn't tell you guys what happened yet, did I?"

"Silly, if you did, then we wouldn't be having this conversation, now would we?" Sekine was, thankfully, trying to keep it light and cheerful. A small action, but it enough to keep Iwasawa from putting her head back into that dark fog that inches away from consuming her again.

"Y-yeah, sorry, but you think we put off this topic until later? I want the rest of the band to listen all at once, that way I won't have to repeat myself. Ah, well... you know, it's still kinda hard for me to say and..." she cleared her throat awkwardly.

Sekine paused, taking a second to think about pressing the subject further. "I gotcha." Fortunately, she didn't. "Say no more then, my dearest leader! I totally get where you're going!" The bassist said, taking the hint. "I shall speak no more! Think we can gather everyone up later this week? I think everybody's got time to spare by then."

"I'm good with that. Thanks, Sekine."

"All right. My work here is done. I have to go. Irie's still sleeping and I have to wake her up before she sleeps in too late."

"It feels like your two roles got reversed. Shouldn't Irie be the one to be waking you up?" Iwasawa asked.

"Even these things happen once in a while, geez," Sekine pouted. "Miyukichi's tired, and I, being the great humanitarian I am, have to make sure to wake her. I have yet to eat breakfast after all."

Iwasawa chuckled lightly, "Heh, really? Just eat some cereal or something. You can handle that at least."

"I need my rice, girl! Haha! Anyway, I'll see you later."

"Yeah, later."

"See ya—oh, and good job! You were amazing last night at the concert!" Sekine slid in a quick compliment before hanging up. Iwasawa still held the phone to her ear, listening to the beeps that signified that the call ended, taking in the praise for the bassist.

Iwasawa had counted some mistakes throughout the duration of the entire concert; something that she felt was relatively sloppy of her. Taking into account of her perfectionist side, it was unacceptable. Overall, however, the concert went on without a hitch. Sekine must've thought that Iwasawa was taking that into heart, and wanting to cheer her up. "Geez that girl," Iwasawa said, "I never know what's going on in that brain of her's." Reaching down to pick up the deformed square she dropped earlier, she ended the call.

"Idiots, I'm surrounded by idiots," the vocalist mumbled, the faintest hint of smile coming across her lips as she recalled the faces of her band and the Battlefront. They were always there, even when she didn't want them to be. They were by her side when she was in need. They're all idiots, but those idiots always helped her when she was down.

"_**Though there are a whole lot of idiots and morons in the SSS, we will always be here to help one another in a time of aid."**_

She wasn't alone in this world anymore.

* * *

Iwasawa abided patiently for the dial-tones to end as she sat on the sofa, her equanimity tempered and weathered from the years, a skill that proved useful to her many times before. At long last of the eight-second eternity, the other line was picked up. A female voice answered the call, one that Iwasawa wasn't acquainted with. A secretary? If the business was as big as Ryogo said it was, then a secretary wouldn't be a abnormal thing. "Hello? How may I help you?" The attendant's salutation was clear, robotic from years of handling the desk job the same way, everyday.

"I would like to speak with Iwasawa Ryogo. Is he present at the moment?" Iwasawa replied back. It was best to be concise.

"May I ask your name?" The guitarist could hear the ruffling of papers being flipped on the other side.

"Iwasawa Asami." Speaking her full name still felt odd to her own tongue. More shuffling of papers.

"Ah, yes. He has been expecting you. Please hold as I transfer your call onto his line." The secretary hung up, leaving Iwasawa with the usual classical piece of elevator music. Iwasawa exhaled deeply, preparing herself.

A click then a bit of static.

A rough voice answered, "Hello?"

Iwasawa felt the lump on her throat expand out of her nervousness, suddenly making it hard to breathe, She took a steadying breathe, swallowing down the panic that was mounting back down and repressed as much as she could. She hoped he would have missed the slight delay in her response. "It's me. You said that you wanted to talk, right?" She glanced quickly to the corner of the room, letting the sight of her acoustic guitar to remind her about why she was doing this in the first place. Hisako and the others... She must do this for them. Iwasawa continued, "I'm here and I'm ready to listen to anything you want to say."

Ryogo laughed delightfully, catching Iwasawa off-guard. "To hear my daughter the first thing in the morning makes me somewhat happy to hear. With that little concert you held last night, I expected you to be so exhausted that you would be sleeping in all day." He evaded the topic. Iwasawa didn't foresee this coming. Formulating a new reply would disrupt the plan of action that she originally wanted to ask. Nevertheless, she replied, taking care of what she should say. It would be wise to exercise imprudence at the moment.

"It did last long, but I thought this phone call might've been important enough to listen to. But it appears to be a waste of time," she said coolly. Maybe she could try to pretend to discontinue the conversation to get him to finally be straightforward with his wishes. "If all this is just for the purpose to make small talk, then perhaps I should hang up now. I imagine you have a busy schedule, no?"

"What, Masami? I was merely curious of last night's performance, as I was absent for most of it. You drew in quite the crowd after all," he said simply. Iwasawa wasn't sure if he took the bait or was sidestepping around it again. "Or are you that eager to hear what I am going to offer?"

Unsure if that response was what she intended to get out of her feint, she ventured with sharpened caution, "What do you want?"

"It's more like a job position offer really," he began, "What do think about working under me in my management? I'm positive—"

"I refuse," Iwasawa shot him down brusquely, automatically. His proposal seemed almost like he was mocking her. There was no way that Iwasawa could ever do anything like that. To top it off, she neither had any real experience in the practice of business nor in the medical field. Otonashi would be a better choice rather than her. "How in the world did you ever come to think that I would be willing to work with you?"

"I was hoping that you could take it into consideration. There's still more to what I want to say. Don't be so quick to make a biased decision, Asami," he said. "You said that you would stay and listen to whatever I was going to say. Let me explain."

Iwasawa didn't like the direction this was heading. "Fine," she apologized halfheartedly, "I was being too brash." It's not like she will actually contemplate seriously over it anyway. "Please continue."

Ryogo, on the other line nodded in acknowledgment, "Thank you for allowing me your time. I know this will not be for naught." He cleared his throat, "Asami, you will going on into the music industry as soon as possible, am I right?"

He was making this frustratingly hard for Iwasawa to see through his intentions. She was starting to feel uncomfortable, especially when he knew what she desired. "Yes," she started cautiously, "what about it?" This didn't bode right with her.

"If you were to come and work with me then I can promise you that you and your band can be shown into the world of fame. Our company has many branches spread throughout Japan, ranging from music to customer goods."

Iwasawa began to piece the puzzle together, attempting to not be too careless to make a prejudiced decision. As it stands at the moment, she wasn't liking the conclusion of her speculation. "And what you are saying is...?"

"I would like to propose that you and your band join our company." What? "With our management and sponsorship, you can expect to see great results." Whoa, what?

Wait, what?

Iwasawa fell silent, taking it impassively until it connected with her brain completely moments later. Yet she was still unable to believe it. "No, I—wait—what?" Iwasawa spluttered out lamely. It was the only thing closest to a rational coherent thing she could verbally sound. Her thought cycle crashed in vertigo, making it difficult to compose a real response. Everything jammed just below her vocal cords, wedged and unable to come out.

Did he really just say that? Iwasawa sat stunned, shell-shocked. Ryogo took this opportunity to profess more into his notion, somehow mistaken his daughter's disbelief for more of a blithe confusion that she would have run into this once-in-a-lifetime-opportunity. "I know that this is a bit of a shock but I want you to consider this in all earnestly. This will benefit you in the long run, I'm absolutely positive about this."

Iwasawa managed to grasp part of her floating logic to produce a response, "But, why?" She could only say that with her scattered rationale. It made no sense, none at all. The best she could do to get a justifying reason was to ask, but being stunned stiff didn't help her ask more detailed interrogatives.

Ryogo didn't appear to hear her muted murmur. "So what do you think about it?" Ryogo sounded amazingly hopeful. Iwasawa, after regaining more control over her disarray, geared dilatory back into focus. "How about it?" He asked again, with much more complacence.

Everything seemed to be too good to true, it didn't make any sense. What kind of incongruity was taking place here? Was he alright in the head? Did he drink too much in the morning? Hit his head against something? It was too unbelievable. His dipsomania must've been acting up this morning really badly.

So this naturally caused some suspicion to quickly rise up once Iwasawa finally gotten a firm hold of her logic. Dubiety shot her like a bullet, knocking Iwasawa abruptly back into focus with reality. Skepticism and acrimony frothed in the pit of her stomach. Finding her lost voice, she asked again, louder and clearer, "Why? Why are you giving such a proposition to someone like me?" At her own comment, various memories of her childhood convulsed painfully at the site at the back of her head. Iwasawa clutched the spot as a reflex. Repulsion began to resurface.

"You don't believe me?" She could sense him quickly losing his courteous attitude for earlier.

"Of course I don't!" Iwasawa momentarily lost her cool, sending her spiraling into the depths of enmity and yelling into the phone tightly gripped in her trembling hand.

"Watch your tone, Asami," Ryogo sounded distant and frigid, freezing over some of her boiling hatred in a cold sleet of fear as she remembered him using that same emotionless speech years ago. "I am doing this out of my own personal interest. You shouldn't—"

"Personal interest! Is that why you wanted me to do this crap? You were planning to use me?"

"Now listen to me!" His furious voice made Iwasawa flinch as she felt the familiar feeling of terror creep up from her subconsciousness. "I know the circumstances that you are in right now. What I'm proposing to you is absolutely superior to anything else that will ever be given to you in your entire lifetime! I know about how you live in a pitiful apartment with that damned brat, going to school like you may someday take up a major in an occupation in something ridiculous as a singer, and part-timing at the nearest supermarket for a miserable amount of money! You have no other choice but to accept!" He roared, temper rising fast.

Iwasawa flew to her feet, "There's no fucking way that I will! I—"

"Can you still say that now?"

"What are you—?

"That pink-haired brat—Yui, was it?"

Yui's name set off a warning flag. _Danger. Be careful._ Iwasawa forced herself to calm down. Her anger diffused slightly, enabling her to hear to her prudence, faintly, once more. "What about her?"

"She at a local community park right now, isn't she? Playing baseball with some high school team."

Why... does he know that? "Leave her out of this!" she demanded. This was starting to not look good.

"Getting defensive, aren't we? Is that girl part of your precious groupie? How amusing!" Ryogo laughed. "And to top it off, you have a bunch of whelps scurrying around you like rats!"

"Hey," Iwasawa said, radiating a similar frost as Ryogo's, but burning with an aroused rage. The renewed fury rocketed skyward sprouting a colossal blaze. Every insult, every tirade, every damnation, and _everything_ that caused her pain and agony seared into her mind, serving as fuel. "I don't care about anything you say about me, but don't you EVER talk trash to my friends like that! I will, I swear I will, make you regret it if you continue to castigate them further!"

"What will you do?" he challenged, "What _can_ you do? In this situation, you are just like the dirt that I walk on, kicked around and useless! So tell me Masami, what exactly will do you?"

Iwasawa clenched her teeth angrily. That was, as hard it was to admit it, brutally undeniable. Ryogo's social standing was so far up that she couldn't even touch him, nevertheless do anything to him. "That's..." What _can_ she do?

"Hah!" Ryogo snorted. "Putting up threats you can't actually achieve. You're like a mutt; barking without any bite. Girls Dead Monster will become part of Takachi Incorporated, that much is a fact," he said with utmost certainty.

Iwasawa began to worry. Panic had started to slither its entrails into Iwasawa's chest. Her heart pounded painfully. She had refused vehemently, so why was he so confident? "How can you be so sure?"

"Because your intimacy with your friends allows me to be so. You said earlier that you wouldn't stand for anything that would be of danger to your friends, right?"

"Stop it! They have nothing to do with this! They—!"

"If I were to say that they were a big part of this, what would you do?"

Iwasawa's heart plummeted, "What are you... Hisako and the others, why would they be involved in any of this madness...?"

_**"The one who may have killed my brother and me."**_

Hisako's words flickered in Iwasawa's mind. She repressed it down, subliminal denial shielding her from the sharp stabs of guilt.

"Miyuki Irie's parents perished in an airplane bombing by the decreed of the head of Takachi medical branch."

"Hey—!" _**"I can't seem to let it go."**_

"That Yui girl must've had it rough after she became paralyzed. I always felt that I was partly to blame for my subordinate's mistakes. The guy was a pretty new to the company and acquiring such a big job so fast upon entering must've given him some sort of extreme anxiety attack. He said that he lost control of the delivery truck and hit a little girl on the curb of the road."

"Stop...!" Her voice sounded strangled, choked. _**"I simply need to find this out."**_

"Shiori Sekine moved into her eleventh home and immediately was subjected to experimental testing ordered by the Takachi R&D branch. We were in dire need of need subjects. It's not like anymore would miss a forgotten child."

Iwasawa placed her a hand on table for support, suddenly feeling drained. _**"Home... is a place you return to. I don't have such a thing. There's nowhere that I can call home."**_

"And that one you call Hisako, I remember her from a few years ago. She had a striking similarity to her brother Seiji. Poor kid. Tough luck that Takachi had teamed up with the rivaling gang and the boy just happened to be on the wrong side. Those two added to my cleanup duty that day."

"They..." she tried to refuse the fact as a piercing pang of guilt sliced through her. Her reply was weak and muted.

Ryogo fiddled with the silver ring on his left hand, staring weary at the gleam, "Each and every one of those times, I had to deal with cleaning up the work afterward. It wasn't easy, I'll have you know. Troublesome. But it had some benefit in the end, that of which I am grateful for. It raised my impression on my bosses and swayed them into promoting me up to where I am right now."

He sighed tiredly and continued.

"I have a meeting soon and I have to prepare, so I'll have to cut this short. You have two choices. First: you can join Takachi under my provisions that I will have provided to you. Second: You can choose to decline and, well, whatever happens afterward will be on your conscience, not mine. Better hope that your friends watch their backs; who knows what might happen to them."

"I..." Iwasawa said hollowly.

"Ah, you don't need to make a decision right now. Let's see... I'll give you a week. If you are unable to make up your mind by the end of the week, I will assume that you chosen to refuse and take appropriate action accordingly." He sneered, "Now what will you do? I have control over everything. I will not let you or anything you may have stop me. Can you ignore what I say and hope that nothing will happen? Don't be preposterous! Either you accept or you will see the end of your precious Girls Dead Monster. But if they were precious to you, then I think the choice is clear." Ryogo finished calmly. "Until next time, do make a suitable decision." _Click._

The line went dead.

Iwasawa shut her cellphone, placing it down on the table. Biting her lip, she slowly raised her hands to her head and buried her face into her palms. Her fingers grasped tightly on to her cardinal hair.

"_**If you need anything—anything at all—we will be here."**_

Yuri had said that before the concert.

Anything, right? She could ask for anything?

"Then, why aren't any of you here when I need your help?" Iwasawa whispered, her knuckles turning white, nails gouging into skin.

If you will always be here, then where are you now?

The cause of everything, Iwasawa Ryogo.

Or...

Was it Iwasawa Asami's fault?

* * *

**I'm alive! And finally up with a new chapter and another one** **I plan to done with by early or mid March. It's not nearly enough for my long six, eight hiatus, I know. I'll make it up somehow. One of these days, I will also get to changing "Asami" to "Masami" too.  
**

**Plenty amounts of angst in this chapter. Did I plan this? Maybe I did...  
**


	19. Reflections

**Since I am horrible with keeping up with my own updates (disastrously slow writer, I know. My procrastination seems to have almost no bounds), I will stop with trying to predict when I may update again. -_-"**

* * *

"I'm back!" The door creaked open and the metal hinges creaked as it shut closed. Yui's keys jingled as it was placed back into her skirt pocket. The atmosphere inside the complex felt strange. Tense. Much more so than she left it that morning. She set her bags down, the crackling of the flexible plastic made her flinch, like she was disturbing the stiff quiet. Yui removed her shoes, not bothering to put on the slippers beside her feet and stalked toward the couch. "Sempai?" she asked hesitantly. Even the way that she spoke held a sober inkling in it. She didn't like it.

Iwasawa sat on the cool rustic leather couch, hugging her knees to her chest, her scarlet fringes covered most of her face. The redhead lifted her head wearily. "Oh, Yui?" she said, "You're already here?" Welcome back." Her greeting sounded distant, almost like most of her wasn't mentally there. Yui nibbled on her lower lip as she quickly became uneasy from the clawing at her chest.

"S-sempai? What's wrong?" Not used to seeing her usually determined upperclassman in such a state as the one right now, Yui faltered. What in the world happened while she was out? Suddenly, the idea of leaving Iwasawa this morning seemed to be a very regrettable choice. Yui mentally cursed at herself for her stupid carelessness. Her hand drifted in the air and rested upon Iwasawa's shoulder to provide some sort of comfort, but Yui wasn't sure how well it was working.

Iwasawa shook her head. "I—" She paused, the scarlet of her eyes deepening darkly into a near crimson, "I've just been thinking some stuff over."

Yui bit down on her lip harder from the ambiguity. Her hand on Iwasawa's shoulder was trembling nearly unnoticeable, but it wasn't Yui where shaking originated from. Iwasawa was trembling.

Fear? Could this feeling be fear?

Was it okay for her ask about what happened? If she did, wouldn't it add to Iwasawa's worries? She was always the kind of person who didn't easily allow someone else to worry about her. A strong, independent person. The way that things were now made it seem that words might not be the best course of action to take right now.

The younger girl seated herself closely next to Iwasawa, leaning closely on the older girl's body. "Yui?" Iwasawa stared at her out of surprise, her posture became a little more upright.

Now that she was next to her, Yui found it to be even more challenging to talk. Was in her place to try to sermon her own sempai? Yui was younger than Iwasawa, but she wanted to cheer her up, remove the clouds that reigned above her. Yui couldn't find the appropriate words that she wanted to say she sat down. It was oddly awkward for a good long moment. Yui swallowed the growing lump in her throat. Her mouth became dry. Was her body trying to stop her from speaking? She had to get back her attention. Yui closed her eyes in an apptemp to grasp a germane memory in order to break to ice.

At that instant, she recalled her mother. Her mother's illuminating smile.

"W-when I was younger," Yui glanced back Iwasawa with the corner of her eyes. The redhead regressed back into the state she was earlier without her noticing. "My mom would always be beside me when I was sad," Yui continued bashfully, her deep rose eyes filling with warm nostalgia. "I thought I would try the same for you."

Her mother that had always cared for her so lovingly, so delicately, so tenderly. But Yui wasn't a mother. She wouldn't be able to whisk away troubles or wish them away as nearly as effectively as someone like a caring parent. She forced herself to sound positive and calm, a feat that was amazingly difficult for her do. Her anxiety must be affecting her, gnawing at her nerves like chewy candy.

Thankfully though, it managed to work. At Yui's cordiality, the edges of Iwasawa's lips managed to twitch upward into a tiny smile, a progressive sign of acknowledgment. Iwasawa cracked out of her fixation and smiled.

"Thank you," Iwasawa murmured softly. She unfolded one of her arms from her legs and wrapped it around the pink-haired girl's slender waist and pulled her into a partial embrace. "But I'm not really exactly sad. Or I don't think I am."

"Eh?" Yui stared into the cinnabar orbs, puzzled.

"I'm more... confused than sad. But saying that I'm not feeling depressed would a lie."

Yui tilted her head curiously and rested it on Iwasawa's shoulder, replacing her hand and returning her it back to her side. "What happened when I was gone?" she asked, finally finding her previously lost strength to voice her what was on her mind. She snuggled closer, the warmth of the older girl's body drawing her in instinctively. Yui could feel the redhead's muscles loosening up and the arm around her waist tightening.

Iwasawa still seemed to be reluctant. "Yui?"

"Yeah?"

"If someone told you that will take everything away from you—everything—what would you do?"

Yui didn't reply as quickly as Iwasawa expected to her to. Her impulsiveness was pushed aside in order to think rationally and give thoughtful consideration. It was what some people would call to be a difficult question, one that Iwasawa herself had yet to find appropriate answer to.

"Everything?" Yui repeated in affirmation to sure that she was responding with full understanding of what the single word completely meant. Iwasawa nodded, giving the green light.

"I would... beat the crap of them, naturally. But if I did that, then I wouldn't be giving you good advice, huh? If things could be finished like that, then everything would be easy, the world would be kinda violent too. Otherwise, you wouldn't be thinking so hard on how to handle the situation." She pursed her lips in thought, then added, "I don't really know. If this person had the authority to even do that, then this guy must have a lot of power over you. With the way society is built, going after this person must be hard. Money has been turning the world around for the past how-many-centuries now and not everyone can afford to have such a high standing."

Iwasawa eyed her kouhai with evident astonishment, "You have quite the insight. Where did you learn that from?"

"No one really. Nothing too special either. It's kinda obvious isn't it, though? If it wasn't true, then I'm sure that a bunch of people would be living better off than they are now, me included. But it would also cause a collapse of power too, and the government might have to change into some sort of weird limited type of legal system," Yui explained.

"I'm still little shocked about how much you know about this. You must have put a lot of thought into this."

The pinkette laughed, "No way! I can't ever think this much over something like, what is this—economics? I just repeated most of this stuff from my teacher. It makes a little bit of sense and it makes me sounds smarter, but to be honest, I still think it's confusing. The rest comes from the political crap I watched on TV some time ago."

"But you remembered all of that, so you must have some understanding to the topic, no?"

Yui shrugged, "Meh, maybe. The teacher was just ranting about some weird crap. It was funny listening to him go off about it. Besides, I was falling asleep half-way through the lecture, so I don't know any more about it. The information stuck into some deep, dark corner of my brain for some reason." Yui paused, sensing that she was straying them off-track from their original topic. "I don't think I can give you an answer." Yui's roseate irises twinkled with a glimmer of melacholy. "I already had everything taken away from me, but I wasn't able to do anything about it."

Iwasawa's heart fell. She had almost forgotten about that.

Almost.

How Yui lost the ability to move; she was paralyzed and confined to a bed for most of her adolescent life. Hearing that again reminded Iwasawa about the younger girl's past and, consequently, him. How he was responsible for taking her childhood away.

"Iwasawa-sempai?" Yui asked, nudging her gently with her palm. She was finally able to get her to lighten up, but she suddenly tensed back up again. "H-hey, Sempai?" she repeated. Yui had to restrain herself from being too forceful.

Iwasawa snapped out of her reverie. Crap. It was really starting to get to her. She shook her head slightly.

No, she has to stay strong.

For her own sake.

And for the sake of the girl that was sitting next to her.

Fighting off the crawling blackness that stalked into her emotions, Iwasawa removed her arm from Yui's body. "Sorry. I... just spaced out. I have a lot on my mind right now." Iwasawa hoped she didn't sound too stiff. Yui didn't seem like she'd noticed. Brushing her loose locks away from her crimson eyes, she smiled again with the faint resolve that was germinating in her heart the best she could. "Here, I'll help you clean up."

Dusk was setting. The purple and oranges reflected in the sky's clouds from the remaining rays of light streaming across the horizon line. Traces of golden streams were covered up by the coral illuminations of the streetlamps that lined uniformly along the sides of the roads, sensing the coming of the night. The first of the white heavenly sparkles was beginning to show themselves in the darkening coat of black. Iwasawa gripped the metal rails as she walked down the stairs, the sound of her steps echoing in the prevailing dark. She always thought that the sky was beautiful. Tonight is also when Venus and Jupiter would align with the moon. A rare sight that Iwasawa couldn't pass up. A shame that Yui would not join her.

Yui had volunteered to stay back at the apartment, to watch the complex while she was out and to give Iwasawa some time to herself to think. As considerate as the thought was, Iwasawa much rather have had her kouhai beside her right now, but she was right; she really did need to have to be by herself to think, to clear and organize her mind to reach a concise conclusion. And if she couldn't find a solution, then she will consult it with the band. They need to know about what is going to happen anyway. Iwasawa already promised them that right back at the concert.

* * *

Iwasawa exhaled sharply. The air was less dense than she remembered it last. She unzipped her red jacket and furled up the sleeves up to her elbow, revealing her trademark black wristbands. It was warm out, she should have left her jacket at home. She walked at an unhurried pace, taking in her surroundings. Iwasawa gripped the strap of her guitar tighter. She was glad she brought it with her. Music was the perfect way to find a source of relaxation to calm her anxious nerves.

She advanced forward, onward without sparing a second glance back. The horizon's remaining rays had shown her the path. Iwasawa walked almost aimlessly, following the lit trail with little thought.

What would she see at the end of this path? Was this the right way for her to continue to travel on?

Her free hand grazed something cold. The dark of her scarlet irises followed down her arm, to her wrist, to her palm, to her slender fingers slowly until it stopped at rusty silver. A metal rod, interconnected to an open iron gate. Iwasawa focused her attention to the entirety of her full vision.

Ah, so she came here.

The park from before. The location must have, unknowingly, become one of special meaning to her if Iwasawa had impulsively brought herself here. Iwasawa remembered briefly that she had came here before with Hisako.

Hisako. The person who showed her a way to "fight". Who showed her the music that she always wanted to convey to others. Who showed her new ways to sing her all of her emotions with everyone. It was because of her that the world opened up to unrestrained heights. Her meeting with Hisako had finally been able help her start finding a purpose, dreams and goals in a life that rewarded her nothing.

The park was empty, bare of human presence. The grassy ground was uneven, various hills of different sizes, albeit small, covered the majority of the land. Upon reaching the center of the verdant, she crouched down, flipping the clips of her black guitar case and snapping it unlocked. She pulled the wooden string instrument out, touching the smooth, polished surface.

Both her and her liege had been through so much the last few months.

She remembered the pure white of the room, the stench of sterilizer floating in the air, passing out of the windows stubbornly. She had woken up. Woken up from that ethereal, vivid dream. She left the world of her friends and comrades and returned to the place that she rejected, loathed so strongly and bitterly. Yet her feelings had changed considerably since then. With renewed passion and hope, she sang with her guitar again. The moment that she realized that she was given a second chance at life, to fulfill her dreams, was stupendously unreal.

It was also then that she realized that she needed to go back to school. During the last few months before her high school graduation, after she had spoken to her teachers about how she wanted to pursue her wish of becoming a professional singer, she was sent to the hospital. Diagnosed with cerebral contusion, she was rendered unable to speak. Crushed by the weight of failure, she "died". Cursing the unfair hand of fate that laid judgment upon her, she passed on into the "afterlife", where she had met them.

Upon awaking, Iwasawa began to think more about her future. Having an advanced education doesn't seem like something that she'd really want. It's not like she was going to try to become a white-collared worker in the office or have some sort of back up plan if she couldn't make it in becoming a singer. Her confidence in herself was much too great to consider it. Part-time jobs continuously didn't sound too appealing either.

But she wasn't able to graduate on time. She missed so much time of school, and even "died", or at least fell in into a comatose. There's was no way for her to receive her high school diploma then , and she didn't.

Going back to school wasn't so bad now. She now could repeat her last year of school without despising every second of it. Meeting Ai and Rena had helped her become comfortable with their peers.

Iwasawa was quite thankful that she was able to reunite with Hisako again. She was very grateful that she saw Irie, Sekine, and Yui shortly after seeing Hisako too. With them around, her dreams, _their_ dreams could be fulfilled.

She remembered the first time she participated in a school festival. How the band made their very first formal concert, the crowd cheering Girls Dead Monster on. Their acclamations still rang in her ears when she thought back to the time. This school year will be the first and last one that she will treasure so fondly. She would keep the times here, as short as they were, close to her heart.

Iwasawa somehow managed to attract the rest of her friends months after her release from the hospital. TK and Hinata, Otonashi and Kanade (it was still strange for Iwasawa to call Tenshi by her real name) and then Yuri and the rest. Japan is surely a small place if everyone came together so quickly. It was comforting to know that the friendships she acquired from a place that shouldn't have existed was still strong and sturdy after all this time. Bizarre, yes—the mechanics of that afterlife world was beyond her understanding—but comforting.

The vocalist put the black strap over her shoulder and let her body readjust to the weight of the wood. Her index finger haphazardly plucked at the thin metal string. Perfect pitch as always. Her guitar was constantly maintained to its optimal state. She put in great care in keeping it as pristine as the time that she first cleaned it up after adopting it from the streets. It bore significant meaning to her and it eternally will.

The red plastic guitar pick in her hand moved liltingly in a gentle intonation. Up and down, up and down in a light rhythm. Iwasawa watched her wrist flick at the strings in no particular order, producing a capriccio. She hummed absently to a nameless song as it poured out from her subconscious. The sound wasn't bad and the motion of the pick was calming. Iwasawa started off slow to begin and easily slipped into a repetition.

_Ah, sukoshi no aida mattekurenai ka _

_Ah, dokoka de yobu koe ga suru nda_

Iwasawa looked to the skies. It was almost dark, but the celestial beings of Jupiter and Venus was already shining exultantly in the nightfall next the moon. It was like the heavens above was trying to help her with her decision. Calling out to her, telling her to wait a while longer. Wait for something to come to her. They twinkled at her with holy grace.

_"itsuka wa daisutaa _

_urekko myuujishan_

_sonna yume miru yori wa _

_minai hou ga mash darou _

_dareka kawari ni okkakete kure _

_boku wa hitori de muryoku o daiteru yo"_

Iwasawa frequently envisioned her future to be bright. A happy, fulfilling future. Since she still in this world, then at the very least she should try to make the best of it, especially now that she had a solid goal to strive for and people worth being around with her. It shouldn't be too bad, continuing to live for something, maybe for someone later. She wasn't being carefree or ignorant by any means. She was very aware of the more-than-likely possibility that there will be obstacles, opposition, hostility battling against her. Iwasawa was prepared for it. If she wasn't, then it would serve her no meaning to keep moving if she was going to break down or become depressed over every little thing that she wasn't able to overcome. Was there a point to any of it in the end? "Should she continue on the path she was walking?" Iwasawa often encountered those questions whenever she thought too hard about the future. Was it selfish for her to even drag Hisako and everyone else along with her, when they may have something that would rather do instead? She had started this alone way back when, when she was still by herself. Being a solo artist wasn't bad.

_furueteru sorujaa _

_sonna kimi ni mo _

_kono kumo o saite _

_hikari ga sasu you utatteageru kara _

_sabitsuita gen o tatakitsuke_

Hisako was the first one to become someone that truly cared about Iwasawa's well-being. She had came to her not to scold, berate, nor to condemn her. Instead, Hisako came to help her, to be beside her. At that time, it was to "rebel". Rebel against the injustice delivered upon them and God Himself. Hisako ripped through the darkness that had plagued all life and gave her new hope. A brisance of none that she ever had experienced before. The first to change her life. Yuri and everyone else came after her meeting with brunette. All of them helped shape her new life.

_"itsuka wa daihatsumei _

_Nooberu jushou mon _

_sonna boroi yume wa tou ni sutetekita_

_sumikko no hou ni korogatteru kara _

_karenai teido ni mizu wa yatteru yo"_

Those teachers, adults, her peers that surrounded her in the past spokeof nothing other then how Iwasawa could go anywhere. Anywhere she wanted. But she knew. That "anywhere" was nowhere. She had no passion or dreams to strive for, to live for. Where was she supposed to go? Go where they saw her to go? Go where they thought she should go? It didn't matter. Her parents would always be connected to her no matter how far she went. As long as she carried their words, their grudges, their problems, it did not matter where she went. Because Iwasawa knew that she would be someday crushed by their heartaches and be driven into despair. If it was possible for her to live a life full of accomplishments, she could have already done so.

_utsumuita sorujaa _

_sonna kimi ni wa_

_furaseyou kokoro no _

_daichi ni ame o itsu no hi ka kogane no hana o _

_sakasete kaze niyureru yo_

Yuri was the one that gathered the souls of the forsaken and lost in order to fight. She held out her hand to the ones that couldn't stand by themselves anymore and bestowed the power to walk once more. It was due to her efforts and unwavering determination that Iwasawa made it to where she was now. The fearless leader deserved all of her teammates' respect and loyalty, and she was blessed with more. Even if her goal wasn't accomplished in the end, through her guidance, everyone found peace with themselves and with their lives.

_"hitori ja nemurenai yoru mo aru kedo _

_dareka ga ireba sore ni yatsuatari de_

Those nights that Iwasawa prayed so viciously to be alone were often answered. No fighting, arguing or crashes could be heard through the thin walls of the small compact dwelling that she and her family lived in. She was alone, by herself. That's what she wanted. Yet she ached for the closeness of someone to be beside her, someone to talk to, someone to seek refuge in. When her mother walked into her room while Iwasawa was trying to sleep, unseen tears trailed down her face and soaked her pillow. She cared enough to check up on her, even after she beaten down and verbally abused. Iwasawa liked that. She was in no position to care for someone else in her state. But when she asked if she, her daughter, was okay, Iwasawa had to bite her lip so she could keep the venom boiling up inside from spewing out. Iwasawa only shook her head to alleviate her worries make to make her leave the room. Her presence, her love was, for some reason irritating to Iwasawa.

_nante nasakenai _

_ikiteru koto ga fukou de _

_konna boku nante daremo hitsuyou to shitenai nda_

_isso kieteshimae yo"_

Back then, Iwasawa wondered about why she was still alive. Her existence was hypocritical and contradictory. She yearned to have friends and people who she could come to care for, but she couldn't bring herself to get close to anyone. The concept of making "friends" was so foreign to her. So terrifying. The girls in the school hallways whispering lies and jeering rumors were detestable. The boys in the classrooms who gawked at her lustfully were disgustingly repugnant. The teachers that instilled seeds of apocryphal promises and unattainable ideals were a pain to listen to. Her parents that did nothing but bicker over anything that came into mind were intolerable. Everyone around her gave her looks of pity, false encouragement and thorny derision. Since no one wanted her to be here, why should she continue to stay?

_ah sonna no atash datte onaji sa_

_ah ikiteiku no wa muzukashii na _

_ah dakara uta o kiite hoshii nda _

_ah kimi dake ni utau uta da kara_

Sad Machine was her savior. That band granted Iwasawa a way of true escape from her world of lies and pain. Their music screamed the words that she couldn't say, revealed the emotions she couldn't surface to the outside. It poured out the suffering she locked away from peering eyes so everyone could her hear her cries and throes. The singer of Sad Machine felt the similar agony Iwasawa did, she knew how Iwasawa felt, even though they had never met in reality. It was with that empathy and heartfelt passion that Iwasawa gathered up the courage to rise to her feet and sing.

_demo mou ikanakucha_

_nagai wa dekinai nda _

_yakusoku o nokoshite, koko ni kiteru kara _

_dakara saigo no uta ni naru yo _

_sukoshi demo chikara ni naru to ii na_

Iwasawa followed in that girl's lead, hoping that maybe someday, someone could feel that same feeling of hope and inspiration that she did. So when Iwasawa was alongside Hisako in the "afterlife", she knew. She knew how that the deserted souls had lost their way and how she could be of use to them, even if it was miniscule amount. Iwasawa wanted to portray that glimmer of light that shined within their hearts. So Iwasawa sang. Sang to the heavens, sang to God about their common strife and the fiery determination. She wasn't sure if He heard her, but she was damn glad that her songs managed to resonate in the human-like automatons that filled that world.

_daremo ga sorujaa_

_yume miru sorujaa _

_soratakaku hoero _

_jishin no nasa wa sono mama de ii nda yo _

_atashi ga shinjiteageru zutto_

"Everyone's a soldier". Iwasawa used that phrase to describe the Afterlife Battlefront. A soldier marching onto the battlefield against the unknown. An army that was constantly striving to prove their worth. That was all they wanted, to show God the austere and arbitrary. They didn't yearn for the perfect life that they didn't have, but to show how they didn't have the chance to create the perfect life they wanted. Yuri had her life greedily taken away from her, as well as many others of the Battlefront. It was unfair and foul. So they caused a cacophony in that silent world. Iwasawa didn't know if God acknowledged them but here she was now. She was still alive. She was still breathing and living in the world that she cursed so vehemently. And she didn't mind. Now Iwasawa had people that believed in her, and she had people that she could believe in. Her dreams were something that she could believe in.

_ah youyaku futarikiri ni nareta na _

_ah omae no uta mo kikasete kure_

Iwasawa breathed out the final lyrics, each word falling from her chapped lips growing quieter and quieter until it was low hum. Right now, in this moment, it was only her and her guitar. It's been a long while since she had sat together with it by herself. Nowadays, she played the guitar while someone else was in the room, whether it be Yui in her apartment or for practice in the school. She slid her hand under the guitar neck. The smooth polish was warm from her palm.

The vocalist sat back. The guitar laid on her lap with the strap still encircling her upper body. Her arms stretched out behind her, palms facing down on the grassy turf. Iwasawa looked upwards to the sky again as she fell once more into deep thought.

"It's just me and you again, huh?" she murmured quietly, "How did it become this way...?"

Iwasawa made a promise to herself that one day she would go follow her music. Live by it. Survive by it. It would be just her and her guitar. That was the way that it was before.

If she reflected upon the past and present, she could see that the dreams that she had now and then were the same. Practically the same, but something was different.

She wasn't just her and her guitar anymore; it was her, her guitar, and her friends. She wouldn't live and survive by herself anymore. There were people that could share her failure, her successes, her pain, and her happiness.

Was it wrong to blame herself for everything that had happened to her, to Hisako, Irie, Sekine, and Yui? If Iwasawa knew what was going on and what her father was doing behind the scenes back then, would she have done something? Could she do anything at all? Maybe if she did know, then she might have prevented some of the things from ever happening at all. She could have saved those strangers at that time from grief and suffering.

Maybe she could have been able to save herself.

"What do you think?" Iwasawa mumbled, "I wonder, what kind of song would you play for me today?"

The strings reverberated in the clear air in response.

* * *

**The part with Iwasawa singing and stuff (the song was "Last Song") would make more sense if there was a translation of the song nearby because I did base that section off what I interpreted (sort of) the song to be like if it was Iwasawa herself. Uh... did that make sense?  
**


	20. Finalized Verdict

**Thank God for Thanksgiving break! Things would be so much better if I didn't have that truckload of homework to do every freaking night. I finally got this chapter up. Since I tend to take long breaks in-between chapters, this one acts kinda like a recap for me. I know that many of you probably want something more exciting to happen, but I thought that putting one more of these would be enough to fluidly bring everything together. **

**So uh, enjoy.  
**

* * *

It was with the snap of her schoolbag buckle that reminded her of the time of day it was. Hisako clasped her bag closed after carefully placing her textbooks inside. The students around her were already starting to leave the class. Their laughs and colloquies were filtered out from her listless mind, barely catching Rena's and Ai's bid of farewells, where of which she mumbled out her own goodbye with a wave of her empty hand with as much mirth she could present to the two. The last of the students, a duo of idling girls merrily conversing about going to a nearby karaoke studio before the end of the day, finally shuffled out the door. Now, it was only her and Iwasawa left.

Hisako had trouble sleeping the night before, thus causing the bulk of her exhaustion. It was only when she saw Iwasawa deep in thought that morning during their homeroom period that Hisako's distress began to flourish further. The more Iwasawa sat in her seat looking absently out the window with that frown permanently stapled upon her lips, the more that badgering apprehension pegging at her side amplified. Topped with the mild amount of stress from her school activities—English was a complete pain in the ass—and her insufficient sleep, Hisako was really feeling the fatigue set in. Perhaps it was that peculiar foreboding that hit her yesterday afternoon that caused the beginning of her woes.

The said girl was acting... strange. Not the same kind of "strange" where Iwasawa would spend every miniscule second of the 1440 the world spent revolving around in a single day on its axis working on a piece of new music (Hisako recalled the time where Iwasawa even literally—not really—passed out from lack of food, starving her "dead" body just to finish "Crow Song"), but it the was the kind of "strange" in which Iwasawa appeared to be engrossed in something that wasn't related to her music. As crazy as it sounds, the oddity was true. Just watching Iwasawa was extremely agonizing as is. Just what in the world is she thinking about?

"Hisako," and as if Iwasawa sensed Hisako's vexation, the redhead called out to her startling her, so much so that she nearly jumped due to her solicitousness. Gosh, Hisako really hoped that none of that pent-up worry showed there.

Much to her dismay however, it did. "W-what?" She ended up stuttering. And she could feel a speckle of cold sweat slither down her cheek from the emotional stress and her petty embarrassment tinted her cheeks a faint pink.

Iwasawa seemed to be more focused now than a few minutes prior. As if she finally made up her mind over the ravelment. "Do you remember—," Hisako observed how swift she was to the point, "—that time during the concert when I went to go see him? During the intermission break?"

The memory immediately resurfaced just like that, as clear as day. The images flashed quickly, one by one, like an instant motion picture. "Yeah, I do." Hisako could feel her past antipathy unearth itself and seep into her veins once more. Her dislike towards Iwasawa's father was nearing the amount that Iwasawa herself felt. And it wasn't even Hisako that had to live with the wretch all her life! Had she underestimated the extent of her forgotten vengeance that much? It certainly was not something that she enjoyed dealing with every time that man was brought up. Unintentionally steeling herself, she swallowed the rising emotions back to the bottom from whence they came. "What about it?"

The chair legs grated against the floor harshly as Iwasawa pushed it backwards to stand. "I have been thinking this over a lot lately," she grabbed the russet bag from the desk latch as she spoke, "and I believe this might be the best time to tell you—no, everyone—this." The vocalist seized the handle of the heavy guitar case near her feet and began to walk out. "Let's go."

Feeling uncertain, Hisako faltered, "Go? Where?"

"To where everyone's at."

* * *

Iwasawa didn't need to take three steps into her apartment to make sure that the rest of her accompaniments were present. There was no need to contact them because they were already making themselves comfortable inside. Those spare keys actually came in handy.

Irie was the first to notice the band founders when they entered as she headed for the kitchen, passing by two. "Welcome back," she greeted them modestly with a respectful inclination of the head. Sekine and Yui cheerily followed in suit.

"I'm home." It rolled off the tongue habitually, but Iwasawa still felt awkward when she used that phrase, whether it was to someone else or by herself when she returned to her complex. It was traditional and natural to most in the country of Japan, but the meaning of it was still foreign to her. Before, her mother would meekly reply back to her and promptly return to whatever she was doing, commonly the chores around the cramped little house of theirs. Beside Iwasawa, she could hear the quiet mutter of Hisako's "pardon the intrusion" and the squeak of the rusting copper door hinge closing shut. They both removed their shoes and sauntered over to the other occupants.

Yui left her sectional couch spot out of consideration for Iwasawa and Hisako and reseated herself on the floor, sliding her legs under the low table. Irie returned from the kitchen holding a tray with five cups full of piping hot tea along with the silver electric steeper. After pouring everyone their share of piping hot green tea, she took her place next to Yui, blowing delicately on the transparent malachite surface before taking a delicate sip. Sekine sat cross-legged in a large cantaloupe bean bag chair to the left of Irie, causing the middle of the anomalous chair to sink under her weight. Her aquamarine orbs gleamed with a sparkle of knowing and anticipation. The blonde nodded her head slightly towards Iwasawa, giving her the okay to begin after tearing into the perforated tab of her strawberry Pocky box.

Iwasawa smiled resignedly and lowered her head. "Sorry," Iwasawa said offhandedly, effectively eliciting reactions from everyone else.

"Where'd that come from?" Irie asked.

Iwasawa rubbed the nape of her neck awkwardly as she struggled to express her emotions, "I wanted to apologize. I felt like I've been pretty troublesome to you all. With everything that's going on, I thought I was bringing you guys down. That's why—,"

"What now, Iwasawa? Have you gone mad? There's no way you have," Hisako interjected.

Sekine nodded and adjusting her body in the soft chair, "Teenage angst is fairly common. There's really no reason to apologize." The blonde nibbled on the frosted tip of her biscuit stick. "You've been over-thinking it. Too much thinking is unhealthy, you know."

Over-thinking it? "But... you know about my father done. I just wanted to make sure that I wouldn't do anything rash that might affect the band negatively." Was she really being overly cautious over the entire thing?

"Key word, Iwasawa: band." Hisako prodded the vocalist with her elbow. "All the important stuff should be discussed with the band first. The stuff about your old man shouldn't give you grief," though the same is applicable to herself, "we'll find a way through this."

"Making decisions by yourself is rash," Irie said and then put a hand to her mouth, flustered. "Ah, sorry. That was rude of me." A pale pink blush bloomed on her face from her outburst. Sekine snickered at the drummer.

Yui smiled at Iwasawa. "You see? Everyone's here for you." She laughed and waved her hand dismissively, "We're not THAT stupid."

Iwasawa felt her muscles loosen. So that's how it was? "Sorry," she apologized again, for a different reason this time. "I must have not been keeping you guys' feelings in consideration." The porcelain cup in her hands seemed to emit a little more heat onto her palms. Its warmth felt relaxing on her worn, calluses.

"And we're done on this topic." Hisako guzzled down the rest of her green tea and placed the empty container on the table in front of her, across from Irie, who automatically refilled the cup for the older girl. Flashing the purplette a thankful grin, Hisako abruptly decided to get back on track. "Iwasawa, that wasn't the only thing you wanted to talk about?"

Noticing Hisako's eagerness, Iwasawa decided to continue with what she was planned to say. Well, it's better than prolonging the inevitable. Now would be the best time than ever. Iwasawa gulped the last of her lukewarm drink all at once to moisten her dry throat.

"Let's start with this then. I want to ascertain where we stand as of now and where we're going, so I'm going to recap," Iwasawa started. "Back at the concert, I called for an unscheduled intermission. You remember all that, right?"

Yui took a Pocky stick from the carnation box and bit down on it. "Oh yeah, I remember that. You went off to go see your dad then," she replied carelessly and sipped her tea. Irie kicked the fang-tan's shin under the table for her nonchalance for the sensitive subject. Yui spit up some of her tea and fell into a violent fit of coughs as she tried to clear her throat. Irie held her fragile cup with both hands up to her lips as if nothing had happened and ignored the suffering girl beside her, "That's right. You haven't told us what happened then."

"You guys even went out to talk near the school gates. We lost sight of you after that so we couldn't tell what you did. What went down back over there?" Sekine said from the aberrant coral seat.

"I guess I was little provoked when I saw my father at the concert. When I think about it now, I wasn't thinking all the way through. It was a spur-of-the-moment thing," Iwasawa crossed her legs as she tried to recall her rationale. "I really thought that he might have been there to stir up some trouble or start something dangerous, so I went out to check." It was mind-boggling how easily Ryogo managed to get under her skin like that. Just seeing his face in the crowd made her go on edge.

"He is a shady figure to begin with. I can't blame you for being so tense. He's pretty abstruse; it would be weird for someone like him to randomly pop up at something so buoyant as the concert," Hisako said thoughtfully.

"He doesn't like the type to even attend those kinds of events," Sekine added. "I mean, everything about him screams 'serious', like a workaholic."

"And? What he did he say?" Yui asked, recovered from the assault.

"Nothing much really. He wanted to see what all the noise was about and see what was going on." Iwasawa intentionally left out the part where Ryogo said that he wanted to see how her concert was progresses. It wasn't _that _important. Why would he care about his own daughter? It was probably a lie anyway. "He gave his business card and left afterward."

Pulling out the shriveled rectangle out of her pocket and straightening it out as best as she could to make the text somewhat legible, Iwasawa presented the said card to the band members. Hisako, being the one nearest to the vocalist, was the first to seize the item.

"Yuck, I was right. Seriously a workaholic," Sekine grimaced darkly at the small card from her chair. "He needs to find a new hobby."

"Freakin' adults," Hisako scrutinized the card with a snarky comment, laughing dryly at nonexistent humor that she found within it. "Your dad is quite the workhorse. Bringing his card everywhere he goes. Seriously needs to find a hobby." The brunette flicked the square towards Yui. It flew flimsily to strawberry-blonde, who barely caught a single folded corner with her fingertips right before it glided down to the floor. Yui growled angrily at the lead guitarist when in her attempt to gracefully retrieve the card out of the air, she slammed her shin into the one of the table legs in the same spot that Irie hit her previously.

"Iwasawa, you didn't really call him, did you?" Sekine asked. "With the kind of trashy attitude he has, I would have prank-called him and hung up just to piss the jerkface off."

Yui rubbed her tibia gingerly, knowing that the next morning, there would be a nice looking bruise on it. "You did call him just the other day, didn't you Sempai?" Yui remarked in reconfirmation as she continued to grimace at her achy limb. Iwasawa never did tell her the reason why she brought up that odd conversation the other day. She had an inkling that it may be about Ryogo, but she didn't bother pressing the issue farther out of respect of her Sempai's privacy. She reckoned that sooner or later Iwasawa would bring it up, so there was really no need in badgering her for it. Guess this means her initial hunch was correct.

Iwasawa nodded. "He wanted to talk about an offer."

Amethyst orbs glistened with rapt attention. "What kind of offer?" Irie inquired.

"It involves all of us."

"And...'all of us' are here listening?" Sekine said, attempting to try her luck at sliding in some jocular amusement in midst of the flourishing austere atmosphere. Though her rhetorical attempt fell flat in vain as it was instantly overlooked.

"Ryogo wants the band to partner up with Takachi Incorporated. In other words, he wants us to join him and his company, using us as profit."

Hisako promptly gagged on her hot tea in response, scalding her taste buds, hacking and coughing from the shock. Irie and Yui merely gave Iwasawa a disbelieving look of incredibility. Sekine dropped her Pocky, the outer half hanging out her mouth dropping to her lap, from the bombshell.

With every passing moment that the redhead did not try to take back what she said, cognizance etched itself into their heads as the truth. No punch-line was given nor joke was made in those moments. Slowly but surely, the data pried and dug into their brain cells.

"You can't be serious," Irie said, feeling the need to ask for ratification. By some weird chance, Irie believed that she may have heard wrong or misunderstood or—

"That's what he said. No doubt about it." Their reactions were exactly identical to her own when she first heard the proclamation by Ryogo himself. Iwasawa glanced at Hisako, who had suddenly become unnervingly silent.

Sekine laughed awkwardly. "Silly Iwasawa! W-what are you talking about? Haha... He didn't say _that, _per se. Hey, Iwasawa?"

"I'm not lying," Iwasawa confirmed, though due to their refusal to vouch to her announcement (to very obvious reasons; if she could, she wouldn't believe it herself either), Iwasawa saw the need to explain further.

"Ryogo, my father, desires that we take up his offer of sponsorship and become a sub-branch for the company. However, I can't say for sure that his proposition is sincere, or even reliable in the slightest.

"Iwasawa." The redhead could hear Hisako mumble, "Why do you seem so calm about this?"

Wasn't the best thing to do in emergency situations was to stay calm and not panic? The logic made sense and seemed applicable in this circumstance. Iwasawa was already doing her best not to fall into a major emotional melt-down or be the first to start one. "Hisako, I—"

Without giving her the chance to finish, Hisako abruptly grabbed Iwasawa by the shoulders and shook her tumultuously. "Dammit Iwasawa! If you go and say something stupid like you accepted this crap without our consent, I swear that I really will punch you!" She held the vocalist's blouse collar pugnaciously in her sudden unnatural frenzy.

Irie shot up from her seat, "Stop it, Hisako! What are you doing?" Yui and Sekine ran behind Hisako to try to hold the enraged girl down before something dangerous happened.

"Oi, Hisako! Get a grip, will you!" Sekine blared.

"Calm down Hisako! Wait!" Iwasawa grasped the brunette's wrists and attempted to rip her absurdly strong grip off from her body. It was astounding how tenacious the girl was.

"I said 'wait' Hisako!" Iwasawa finally demanded, drawing out a commanding intonation with a likeliness to one of jurisdictional standing. Crimson eyes beckoned upon her and Hisako froze, but did not let go. Her fiat effectively paralyzed Hisako, as well as everyone else occupied in the room.

"I haven't replied back yet." Iwasawa held Hisako's carpals determinedly as reassurance, fiery crimson softening back into a warm vermillion. She had figured that Hisako to act harshly at this, but not to this extent. "Isn't that why I gathered everyone here? You said it yourself, didn't you? 'All the important stuff should be discussed with the band first.' That's what you said, didn't you?"

Hisako's ashen smoky eyes, fueled by flare that burned and erupted from an unknown source, slowly smothered back down into their original cinereal color from hearing her friend's pleas. Tranquilizing the wells of her fiery fervor, the haze ventilated out from her judgment and she breathed out listlessly. Regaining control, Hisako released Iwasawa from her hold just as Sekine and Yui let go of her. The younger girls stepped back cautiously after remembering that their bodies were capable of producing movement, but still stiff with anticipation of another burst of outrage. Sekine gave a pat on the brunette's back doubtfully. "Hey, Hisako. You okay?"

"Y-yeah." With her silvery orbs cleared from the alien miasma, Hisako hand went up to her head, clutching it charily. Allowing one last moment of recovery, she shook her head and exhaled again. Sekine pulled away and settled on the on the couch's armrest next to the older girl. Yui frowned as she went back towards Irie.

"S-sorry, Iwasawa. I kinda lost myself for a second there," Hisako fumbled guiltily, "I don't know what came over me, I—,"

"It's fine," Iwasawa said, giving her a small smile, "I wasn't expecting any type of heedless acceptance from any of you." Given the circumstances, she supposed that her reaction was... normal, if not totally unexpected. "I'm not going to do anything reckless. Girls Dead Monster is our band, not just mine. I know that."

Hisako, heartened by the band leader's words, cracked a half-smile. "When did you become so good words? You're practically like Yuri. Did her magnificence rub off on you too?" She reclined into the upholstered frame of the sofa and closed her eyes. _Gotta stay calm. Don't let every little thing that guy does get to you. _Finding resolution, Hisako carried on where the conversation left off, "So? Iwasawa, what'd you say to Ryogo?"

Iwasawa shook her head. "I... have yet to give him an answer."

"And we're here to help formulate an answer," Irie broached, putting the feud that occurred just moments before aside. She never did like the inter-group arguments that they would, more often than not, have. The drummer was always the kind of pacifist type of person. Or at least, tried to whenever possible (it shouldn't even be mentioned how many times she failed at that when she was one of Yuri's underlings, where violence could be applied to practically everything).

But, it certainly did give her quite a shock. Never once did Irie ever hear Iwasawa become so peremptory before. Every dispute that the band had, whether it be Sekine's episodic improvisations during practice (or while in a live event, much to Hisako's dismay) or any other uproar that Yui managed to get into, the vocalist always handled things coolly and sensibly. That cool demeanor that Iwasawa has been one of her good points, and even charming from time to time, as demonstrated by the amazingly large fanbase she—and the rest of the band, of course—developed back in the SSS's active time in... wherever-the-heck they were (a dream perhaps?).

And it fell on her like a ton of bricks. Irie was suddenly alarmed at how astonishing similar that side to Iwasawa was with Ryogo. But, they _were_ family, after all.

With the drummer beside her looking slightly distracted, Yui took the initiative to proclaim her solution instead. Considering what the man had made the group deal with, it was obvious what the answer would be. "We're _not_ going to take it, naturally."

"Beat me to the punch, Yui," Sekine exclaimed with a quick thumbs-up. The pinkette comically returned the gestured with her own.

"That was what I was said. There was absolutely no way that I would agree," Iwasawa confirmed. "What is keeping me back was something unsettling that he mentioned."

Yui arched an eyebrow, "Oh? Like a condition?"

"I suppose it's more like a threat."

Hisako bristled slightly. Luckily, Iwasawa noticed and continued further without missing a beat.

"That's why I've been treading on this carefully. Not to do anything rash, like you said, and to consider the safety of the band. I don't want to cause something that I would regret later."

Sekine frowned at the vocalist. "You haven't really thought about accepting it, Iwasawa?" she asked skeptically.

"Wait, Sekine," Irie brought her hand to her mouth in thought. "Iwasawa, can you tell us specifically what he said. If you needed to think about this, then this must be something serious. If this wasn't so important, you would have already flatly rejected him. I know that for a fact."

Iwasawa nodded in compliance. Irie's observational skills were as sharp as ever. She must have gotten them from her parents.

"We didn't talk for too long. He didn't really get into specifics either." Wonder why she hadn't thought about earlier. It was odd that he did not say anything too explicit about the deal. And why the sudden interest in her? Iwasawa liked to think of Girls Dead Monsters as a pretty good band overall, still out of reach of the popular band in Japan (Sad Machine for example, though they had a falling out some years back), but a splendid band nonetheless. Was she over-thinking things again? "Just that he wanted us to work with the company under their sponsorship and management."

"You said that he may have blackmailed you too. What about that?"

"If I decided to refuse his request, he said something like seeing the end of Girls Dead Monster. He might be planning to resort to foul play against you guys too."

"I see," Irie mumbled, continuing to appear unruffled.

Sekine hopped up and sidled next the purplette. "No, no, Miyukichi! That's the wrong reaction! Do you know that means!" she exclaimed.

Yui joined with the blonde. "What if his plotting some sort of death trap for us?" She gasped dramatically, "He must be planning to kill us!"

"Oh, what if he sends a gang of ninjas to spy on us?"

"Stalker status?" Both Sekine and Yui grappled Irie and shook her shoulders in their exaggerated melodrama.

Iwasawa recalled Ryogo's confessions. The confessions of what he has done to them. Should she tell everyone about it? On the other hand, it's not like they are not completely aware about them, being directly or indirectly involved in one way or another. They knew just as well as she did.

The following minute passed by numbly and she could feel the tension bubbling to reclaim the atmosphere. Yui and Sekine's antics were over and done with, exhausting their silliness just as quickly as it came. Iwasawa gazed into her cup of tea. Her miniature self-reflection wavered when her finger rapped the on the outside. The ripple touched upon the entire interior of the cup and peace returned to the reflection. The other her stared back from the lucent liquid surface, leaving behind no evidence, like it never happened moments before.

Will she be able to stay the way she was now when this whole thing was over? Can she live like the way she has prior to seeing her father again? In the same way that the other girl in her reflection returned to normal, will she be able to also?

"I-I..." Irie spoke, breaking the monotony, "I still think... that she should refuse."

Sekine leaned into the drummer, "I think so too."

Folding her arms, Hisako sighed deeply, "Yeah. We're going nowhere at this point, weighing out the risks and consequences."

Yui raised her hand in agreement, "Yeah. It feels like we'll be going in circles if we keep thinking about this."

Despite the majority decision, Iwasawa still hesitated, his words echoing hollowly at the corners of her mind, "But if we refuse..."

_You can choose to decline and, well, whatever happens afterward will be on your conscience, not mine. Either you accept or you will see the end of your precious Girls Dead Monster. _

"I know." Hisako unfolded her arms and grimaced. Her expression became wistful. "You're worried about that threat of his, aren't you? Can't blame you. He's probably capable enough of doing something real bad to each and every one of us."

Then she smiled.

"But I am alive and breathing. Therefore, I am thinking and moving. Because I am—because I am surviving—I can tell you this without a doubt in my mind," Hisako faced Iwasawa determinedly, "We'll definitely get through this. We'll pull through this."

"Iwasawa-sempai, what do want to do with your life?" Yui inquired suddenly.

Instinctively, Iwasawa glanced back to her guitar, patiently for her. "I... want to keep singing. I want to keep playing music. With everyone."

Sekine pulled her body away from Irie. "Then, do you want to do that like this? With someone deciding your life for you, without any control?"

No, of course not. This was her freedom, her life. Her own independence. There were things that she wanted to do that were hers and hers alone.

"You were our first leader. The one that first brought us together. That's why we decided to follow you. No matter where what path you choose, we'll walk beside you," Irie said.

Iwasawa was suddenly reminded by her inner contemplation that she had alone the other day, thinking about something similar. Taking her band to help climb toward the rise of being a professional musician. At that time, she thought that she was only dragging them with her, but in fact she was wrong.

They _want_ to stay with her, walk with her, and perform with her. Not because they have to, but because they want to. They share the same passion as she did.

"Are you sure?" Iwasawa asked softly, "Don't you have something that want to do, something that you want to pursue? A career? A profession?"

A hum from Irie, and her eyes flitted to the side as she began a brief rumination. "Not really, no. Grandmother wants me be a pharmacist or doctor like my parents, but I never considered actually becoming one."

Hisako scratched her cheek, "I haven't thought about things like that since I was little. Music and the band is pretty all that I think about nowadays. Graduating from high school is for assurance. Having some education is important, but I don't have any post-high school plans, except for playing music with you guys."

Sekine giggled slyly. "Yeah, that's true. I certainly can't imagine you as a doctor or a social worker, Hisako. Oh! How about a cop? I could see that," the blonde bantered.

"Sexy Nurse!" Yui blared. Sekine and Yui burst out laughing as they tried to picture the lead guitarist cosplaying the role.

"I'm going to break open those idiotic heads of yours and—"

Both girls stood up and took a wary step back, out of range of Hisako's harrowing reach. They know full well how absurdly powerful those hits from the brunette were, as they were one of her frequent victims before. "Oh, no. That will not do," Sekine stuck her tongue coltishly, "great things start from here. I still need this to rule the world, see."

Figuring out that it was creating another one of their frivolous squabble, Hisako let it go. She exhaled quickly to stymie the folly out of her system. Yui and Sekine shared triumphant grins with each other.

"How about you, Yui? Sekine? Anything you want to do?" Iwasawa asked.

Sekine shook her head, "No. I'm in the same boat as Hisa-cchi here." She jabbed her thumb towards Hisako who glared at the bassist. "Don't give me weird nicknames dammit," the brunette muttered silently under her breath.

"Me too. Can't think of anything I want to do after high school either," Yui added.

"But, hey, Yui. If you and Hinata decide to elope during graduation, tell me beforehand. I want to be the first to know!" Sekine piped coyly.

"I'll tell you if we find a nice-looking house in Hokkaido. Send you some food and a postcard too," Yui joked and she flipped in her pink locks flamboyantly.

"Ah!" A surprised yelp caught their attention. "I forgot!" Irie jumped to her feet in an instant. "My grandmother told me to go buy the groceries today!" The drummer timidly looked at Iwasawa. "Umm..."

Iwasawa kept in a sigh. She supposed it was okay. Grabbing her cell from her pocket, she checked the time.

Huh. It was later than she thought. Their discussion lasted longer than she initially expected. She glanced to one of the windows. It was getting dark too. "It's fine, you can leave. It's almost time for night to set in too. You should hurry before it becomes too dark outside."

Irie gave her an apologetic look. "I'm sorry, I know how important this is."

"Don't worry. We pretty much covered on everything that I wanted to clear up. Thanks for coming over anyway."

"I really am sorry for this," she frowned regretfully, knowing that her leave was an inconvenience. "Come on, Shiorin."

"Eh? What? I'm going too?"

"So the party is over already?" Hisako went to her feet, following the others' lead. "I should take off too. I haven't told Auntie that I was staying over at your house after school. If I make her worry too much, I'll give her a heart attack."

"See you tomorrow. And thanks for having us over today." Irie bowed courteously, her cordial mannerisms taking effect. With the blonde securely in her grasp in one hand, Irie dragged a complaining Sekine in the direction of the door, holding hers and her best friend's schoolbag in the other. Hisako held the door open for two, her lips pursed.

"Hey, Iwasawa?"

"What is it, Hisako?"

"If... if anything happens... just give me a call, okay? I'll be here as fast as I can. Promise me that?" The lead guitarist tapped her loafer's toe cap against the door sill plate and flashed a small grin. Iwasawa wasn't able to interpret the co-founder's actions of either assurance or worry, but nodded nonetheless.

"Okay."

The door closed with a "click".

* * *

Cleaning up the table was chore, no matter how many times Iwasawa did it, it was. Swiping the dim lustrous surface with broad, wide strokes, going corner-to-corner have strangely become one of her pet peeves. There wasn't more than a drop of tea here and there and a miniscule, hardly noticeable, dried smudge of an old coffee stain near the lower-right corner, but Iwasawa continued to give a thorough cleaning. Someone told her once before that the appearance of one house mirrors its resident's own personality. Washing dishes was much more tolerable than this.

She had sent out Yui to buy some groceries with Irie, Sekine, and Hisako in regard to their shortage of items in the refrigerator since the train station, Hisako's house, and the convenience store were all in the same direction.

After washing the cups, Iwasawa would have to start cooking the rice for dinner.

The faded red kitchen rag that she used to wipe the table was thrown haphazardly into the sink, where Iwasawa quickly scoured it under running water with hands. Folding it neatly into square, she put it away for later use.

Then she sighed.

As Iwasawa meditated on what she and the others talked about, it began to appear how the internal strife within herself was from her own woes. Conflicted with causing possible endangerment to her friends by either accepting or declining a simple choice. But, it wasn't so simple when threatened with such peril—even as unprecedented as this—was involved. Could she trust her father?

Accepting it would be just as Sekine said. Living and abiding to someone like a chained mongrel. Iwasawa always wanted to start a real career in music, but not like that. She wanted to reach the top through her own power, not through connections. And what filthy, unreliable connections she had too.

Iwasawa didn't want to be with Ryogo. She couldn't survive staying with him any longer. It was too perilous to be with her father for too long. Her body and mind had already broken down from it before. The stress of it would surely ruin her, kill her. For real this time.

She couldn't die yet. Not now.

But she can't put Hisako and everyone else in danger because of her indecisiveness or her selfishness. Listening to Irie, Yui, Sekine, and Hisako's heartfelt wishes were truly touching—that they were willing to go out of their way to follow her until the end—and it allowed her have hope in the future ahead. But, what if Girls Dead Monster fails? What if they couldn't make it? Couldn't over the obstacles ahead and drift apart? Iwasawa wouldn't mind if it was only her, but the band? She wouldn't be able to bear it.

Alas, she can't brood over this forever. Time was running out and she was out of options.

Then her eyes caught sight over her cell phone lying idly on the counter, a spark of temerity shimmered within them.

Maybe...

She remembered those words back from the evening Girls Dead Monster held their first live concert.

Unearthed by an impulsive notion to _just get things over with_, she flipped the gadget open and punched in the memorized numbers floating in her head hastily. Once upon a time, Iwasawa did say that she was going to live by her music.

The memories of her friends replayed in the depths in her mind like a fast-forwarding movie.

In order to protect what was precious to her, this was necessary.

This was for the best. Her honest conclusion.

Iwasawa knew. She knew from the start.

Things don't last forever.

So, it's about time that she ended everything now.

Iwasawa smirked wistfully at the trite dial-tones. As of that moment, they sounded like music to her ears.

"_Hello?"_

* * *

**Random thought to throw out there: Irie would make good wife-material. That's what I imagine her to be anyway.**

**Anyway, the good stuff will be coming alone next chapter. ****I've planned out what will happen, all that's left to the writing of it. ****Bear with me though, Calculus is no easy foe for me conquer.  
**

**I have been attempting to revise this story from the beginning to make the entire story and its plot flow smoother. I don't really know how well I have done so far wi****th it, but at least there's less errors (I hardly got through like three or four chapters done. Fail). Somewhat.**_**  
**_

**Shit's gonna get down soon, so be prepared.  
**


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